Red Sox players eligible for arbitration
Six Red Sox players are on the list
The Boston Red Sox season is coming to an end very soon. It is time to look at who is arbitration eligible for them this upcoming offseason. As an arbitration eligible player, you are either tendered a contract or non-tendered (released). Players who have 3-6 years of service time qualify for arbitration.
The following position players are arbitration eligible: Reese McGuire, Luis Urias, and Alex Verdugo. For pitchers there is Nick Pivetta and John Schreiber.
The highest paid will be Alex Verdugo which will likely range from $12-15 million. Pivetta will be behind him probably around $7-10 million. Salaries shouldn’t deter the Red Sox from keeping who they want, but performance might.
Reese McGuire: Prediction for McGuire is that he gets tendered a contract. The backup catcher will be entering his first year of arbitration. He is not a gold glove at home plate, but he is serviceable until top catching prospect Kyle Teel arrives possibly as early as 2025. Having his lefty bat is good compliment to Connor Wong.
Luis Urias: Prediction for Urias is that he gets tendered a contract. Urias was the only player acquired by now former chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom at this years trade deadline. He has continued to struggle offensively hitting .210 with only two home runs, but his OBP is at .340 which is highest since his best season in 2021. Defensively, he brings versatility in the infield and can give Devers some days off at third. He is in his second year of arbitration and is under team control through the 2025 season.
Bobby Dalbec: Prediction for Dalbec is that he gets traded as he is technically pre-arbitration eligible due to having less than 3 years of service time. Dalbec should have been traded after 2021 when he hit 15 home runs and had an OPS of .955 in the second half. That was good for 17th in the majors, better than Freddie Freeman in that span. Dalbec has spent the last two years tearing up Triple-A while still striking out nearly 200 times. With Casas the first baseman for years to come, there is no place for Dalbec on the Red Sox in 2024.
Alex Verdugo: Prediction for Verdugo is that he gets tendered a contract. Verdugo will of course not be released. However, he will be the most obvious trade candidate for Boston this offseason. Verdugo was expected to be a breakout player this season and he has taken strives to be a very good right fielder. Offensively he remains average despite a hot start to the season. Between off field issues with being late to games and being too lefty heavy, look for Verdugo to go this offseason.
Nick Pivetta: Prediction for Pivetta is that he gets tendered a contract. He embraced his role after some displeasure of being a reliever and he was nails. As a reliever he has pitched to a 3.07 ERA with opponents hitting .166. Leading the team in strikeouts with 166 and remaining healthy through the whole season once again which can’t go unnoticed. Pivetta as the number five starter next season would give stability to the rotation or he could be traded while his value is about as high as it will get before he is a free next offseason.
John Schreiber: Prediction for Schreiber is that he gets tendered a contract. Going into the year, this prediction was an obvious one, but now not as much. Schreiber missed from Mid May to July with a shoulder strain. In his 41 innings of work to date his walk and home run rate almost doubled from last season. In seven innings of high leverage this season opponents are hitting .321, compared to .164 in 2022. He is under contract through the 2027.
The Red Sox will have time to make these decisions as the deadline for non-tender is not until around mid to late November. The bigger question is who will be making these decisions as Boston continues to search for a front office leader(s).
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Interestingly McGuire has fewer passed balls than Wong, fewer errors than Wong and has hit for a better average. Except for the first month of the new rules for pitchers and bigger bases, he has been good at keeping the running game for stolen bases in check.