Red Sox Sign Southpaw After Stellar 2023 Campaign To Bolster Pitching Depth

Boston added another intriguing arm this winter

Scott Neville | Nov 25, 2023

Red Sox Sign Southpaw After Stellar 2023 Campaign To Bolster Pitching Depth /

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Boston Red Sox

New Boston Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow appears to have a clear plan early into the offseason -- continue to poach pitching talent from the loaded Seattle Mariners system.

Based on initial impressions, that seems like a plan that is going well.

The Red Sox signed left-handed reliever Jorge Benitez to a minor-league deal according to his Instagram post on Friday.

The 24-year-old hurler is coming off a highly impressive season in which he showed the potential to be an impact arm.

Benitez posted a 1.95 ERA with an 82-to-44 strikeout-to-walk ratio, .183 batting average against and a 1.33 WHIP in 64 2/3 innings between five outings for High-A Everett and 40 for Double-A Arkansas.

He will need to lower his walk rate considerably but the southpaw has swing-and-miss stuff and the makings of a high-leverage reliever down the line.

The move comes not long after Breslow made his first official trade, sending infielder Luis Urías to the Mariners in exchange for right-handed reliever Isaiah Campbell.

While Campbell projects to factor into the mix right away, Benitez appears to be more of a project. He'll likely spend the bulk of his season with Triple-A Worcester but if he can fine-tune his command and lower his walk rate, he'll be contributing to the Red Sox's bullpen in no time.

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Published Nov 25, 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