Pair Of Red Sox Players 'Sure To Have Options Declined,' Will Enter Free Agency

Boston can escape a few bad contracts by declining options

Scott Neville | Oct 24, 2023

Pair Of Red Sox Players 'Sure To Have Options Declined,' Will Enter Free Agency /

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Boston Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox's emphasis this offseason will be to revitalize the pitching staff after multiple poor seasons.

Before jumping into the mix for frontline starters to add to the rotation, they must clear out some money and roster spots. Decisions on two of those openings will be fairly easy to make.

"Whether a hire has been made by the start of the offseason, the front office will have some formalities to attend to," MLB Trade Rumors' Darragh McDonald wrote Monday. "Both Corey Kluber and Joely Rodríguez are sure to have their options declined after injury-marred seasons in 2023."

The Kluber discussion is not even worth having. The 37-year-old posted a 7.04 ERA with a 42-to-21 strikeout-to-walk ratio, .297 batting average against and 1.64 WHIP in 55 innings this season. He has an $11 million option with no buyout, meaning Boston will be able to decline his contract and let him loose free of charge.

Rodriguez is at least worth debating but at the end of the day, McDonald is correct. The 31-year-old was limited to just 11 innings with the Red Sox due to three separate stints on the injured list. He allowed nine runs (eight earned) in the small sample size but had a respectable 4.47 ERA in 50 1/3 innings with the New York Mets last year.

The southpaw has a $4.25 million club option with a $500,000 buyout. It's almost a lock that the Red Sox will hand Rodriguez a small lumpsum to ride themselves of a second year on his deal.

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Published Oct 24, 2023

SCOTT NEVILLE

Scott Neville covers the Boston Red Sox for Sports Illustrated's new page "Inside The Red Sox." Before starting "Inside The Red Sox", Neville attended Merrimack College, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media with a minor in Marketing. Neville spent all four years with Merrimack's radio station WMCK, where he grew as a radio/podcast host and producer. His propensity for being in front of a microphone eventually expanded to film, where he produced multiple short films alongside his then-roommate and current co-worker Stephen Mottram. On a journey that began as a way to receive easy credits via film classes, he received a call from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star Charlie Day. Day advised him to make a feature-length film, which he completed his senior year. While writing the film, Neville completed an internship for United Way as part of their NFL Partnership Program. Neville ran the blog for a team of interns and hosted an internet show called "United Way's NFL Partnership Series" where he interviewed NFL alumni. After college Neville wrote for SB Nation's "Over The Monster," a Red Sox sister site of the flagship brand. His work would eventually lead him to a job as a content producer with NESN, where he would cover all sports. After developing as a writer with the top regional network in the world, he was given the opportunity to join the Sports Illustrated Media Group in his current endeavor as the publisher of "Inside The Red Sox." The successful launch and quick rise of "Inside The Red Sox" led to Neville joining the Baseball Essential ownership group, a national baseball site under SIMG. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottNeville46 Email: nevilles@merrimack.edu