Red Sox Insider Believes Boston's Most Durable Starter Is On Trade Block

Boston could remove a key piece of the rotation

Scott Neville | Dec 26, 2022

Red Sox Insider Believes Boston's Most Durable Starter Is On Trade Block /

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Could the Boston Red Sox trade away their most reliable starter?

Only one player in the Red Sox's 2022 Opening Day rotation made it through the full 162-game season without a stint on the injured list -- and one beat writer in the know believes he could be on the trade block.

"Boston is still expected to add a starter or two before Opening Day; if that happens, a trade is possible," MassLive's Chris Cotillo wrote Monday. "Pivetta, who has two years of control remaining, is a logical candidate to be shopped."

The trade possibility became a discussion when the New York Post's Jon Heyman reported that teams are checking in on Chris Sale's availability. Cotillo pushed back on the reality of a trade involving the southpaw.

"Smart of teams to check to see where things stand," Cotillo tweeted Sunday. "That being said, can’t imagine Sox dealing him with value this low. The one guy I think they’d move is Pivetta."

Pivetta went 10-12 with a 4.56 ERA, 175-to-73 strikeout-to-walk ratio, .253 batting average against and 1.38 WHIP in 179 2/3 innings across 33 starts.

As it stands now, trading away Pivetta would be irresponsible with a rotation expected to be filled out by oft-injured veterans -- Sale and James Paxton and inexperienced young guns -- Garrett Whitlock, Brayan Bello and Tanner Houck.

While it would still be a thin group, dealing Pivetta would make sense should the Red Sox re-sign Nathan Eovaldi, Michael Wacha or acquire a reliable external option (Rich Hill does not move the needle in my opinion).

The 29-year-old has extremely poor metrics, ranking in the bottom-five percentile in average exit velocity and hard-hit percentage. He also grades poorly in just about every meaningful metric outside of curveball spin -- where he's in the 80th percentile.

If Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom can get a solid return for Pivetta -- likely relying on his durability and two years of team control -- Boston should pull the trigger.

That said, Bloom would then need to sign an impact starter in his place.

More MLB: Red Sox Wish List; How Boston Can Successfully Build Out Roster

Published Dec 26, 2022

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