Ryan Brasier's tenure comes to an end with the Red Sox
Ryan Brasier's tenure comes to an end with the Red Sox
The Red Sox officially released Ryan Brasier on Sunday ending his tumultuous time with the club. The veteran right-hander is now a free agent and is able to sign with any team.
Boston designated the 35-year-old reliever for assignment following the 9-1 loss to the Cardinals last Sunday.
Brasier was subpar this season, posting a 7.29 ERA, 1.57 WHIP in 21 innings. Over the course of his time with the Sox, Brasier recorded a 4.55 ERA in 222 regular season outings (209 2/3 innings) spanning from 2018-2023.
“Honestly, a new start might not be bad,” Brasier said after being designated last Sunday. “Obviously getting to play at Fenway every day is a dream come true. Two parks you want to play at growing up are Yankee Stadium and Fenway. And I got to do both a lot. So grateful. It sucks obviously but new start.”
This past offseason, fans were clamoring for the Red Sox to move on from the embattled reliever. Instead, Boston committed to the veteran tendering him a one-year, $2 million deal.
One of the main reasons that Brasier returned to the club was his final month of last season, where he posted a 2.25 ERA in 13 appearances. Boston was hopeful that some mechanical adjustments would lead to success this season, but that was not the case.
“We needed to make a move and it was him. It’s as simple as that,” Cora said. “I know a lot of people are crushing him and all that. A lot of people wanted to get rid of this guy in the offseason and all this stuff and he struggled but I’ll tell you what... You don’t have a job, you go to spring training in ‘18 with no guarantees you’re going to make a minor league team. You make the team, you pitch for a World Series team, you contribute, you pitch four games in a row in the last week of the season in ‘21 to get a team (to the postseason), that’s really good.
“He struggled and we stayed with him all the way to the end,” Cora added. “It just didn’t work out. The kid is Class A. Accountable.”
Brasier’s best season came during the 2018 World Series run. He posted an impressive 1.60 ERA, 0.77 WHIP in 34 relief appearances. He was a key member of the Red Sox bullpen during the postseason, allowing only one run, recording five holds, posting a 1.04 ERA in 8 2/3 innings.
Boston now only has two members of the 2018 World Series team (Chris Sale and Rafael Devers).
“He’s really good. I know he struggled the last two years. He got hit hard,” Cora said. “But every day he showed up to work and tried to get better. I’m very proud of him.”
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