Red Sox catcher Reese McGuire on Danny Jansen trade: ‘It caught the whole clubhouse off guard’
The Red Sox made a surprising deal ahead of the MLB trade deadline when they acquired catcher Danny Jansen from the Blue Jays for three prospects.
The acquisition of Jansen helped address the team’s need for a right-handed bat. As a result, the club designated backup catcher Reese McGuire for assignment, who was then outrighted to Triple-A Worcester.
McGuire remains in the system but was ultimately taken back by the trade.
"It's just interesting. I'll definitely say it: It caught the whole clubhouse off guard with that trade," McGuire said at Polar Park Tuesday, per MassLive's Christopher Smith. "I felt like we were a really, really close-knit group. And we finished that first half really, really strong. And everyone was on the same page. Everyone was locked in and ready for that second half to kick off. Unfortunately for me, that move was made, which pretty much put the writing on the wall that the position was going to be filled."
The addition of Jansen forced McGuire off the roster due to his only having the ability to catch, and he was a left-handed bat off the bench. His removal from the 26-man roster was not easy for the veteran catcher to accept.
"It's tough because I feel like I belong in the big leagues, and this one did hurt me a lot," McGuire explained, per Smith. "This one really, really did. It kind of kicked me to the ground, to be honest. Especially when no team claimed me. That was kind of the icing on the cake. It was like, 'Holy (expletive). This is really happening right now.'"
McGuire and his agent looked around the league to see if there was an option for him to hook on elsewhere. After he cleared waivers, he accepted the Red Sox assignment to the WooSox.
“I looked around the league, and I’m not going to name teams, but there were multiple teams that could have upgraded at their backup spot,” McGuire said. “I feel like I’m better than a couple of the guys around the league. But honestly, the timing of it with the trade deadline—and you just never know with team roster flexibility— I don’t know where those backup guys were in their contracts with their teams—if they had any options or if they were on guaranteed contracts. It’s an interesting time with the deadline, too, because you have a handful of teams that are making a run at something and you have a handful of teams that are almost looking the opposite way. And they’re like, ‘All right. How do we get our young guys up here for experience?’”
Since joining the WooSox, McGuire is hitting .083 with an RBI over his first three games in Triple-A.
