The Boston Red Sox should leave no stone unturned in their search for starting pitching.
As free agency approaches and trades are once again allowed, the Red Sox know they need to find one more impact arm. Someone who can slot in nicely as the No. 2 starter in the rotation between All-Star Garrett Crochet and the much-improved Brayan Bello.
This year’s free-agent class, however, has a lot of pitchers who can look like that No. 2 on their best days, then disappear. And perhaps no one is a better example of that principle than Zac Gallen of the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Red Sox linked to Zac Gallen as risky play in free agency
On Monday, Jim Bowden of The Athletic named the Red Sox among the top prospective suitors for Gallen, the third-place finisher in the 2023 National League Cy Young race. And the righty also got a generous five-year, $135 million contract projection from the national insider.
“(Gallen) just turned 30, but over the past two seasons, he hasn’t been the same pitcher he was at his peak,” wrote Bowden. “Will teams see a pitcher who can compete for Cy Youngs again, or one who is more of a mid-rotation starter like he was the last two years?
“Best team fits: (Baltimore) Orioles, Red Sox, (Detroit) Tigers, (Houston) Astros, (San Diego) Padres, (San Francisco) Giants, (Atlanta) Braves, (New York) Mets, (St. Louis) Cardinals, (Chicago) Cubs. Contract prediction: 5 years, $135 million.”
This past year was a shocker for Gallen, and it came at an awful time. He posted a 4.83 ERA in 33 starts, allowing 31 home runs and striking out under nine batters per nine innings for the first time in his big-league career.
Gallen is a fairly safe bet to post 30 starts, as he’s made at least 28 in each of the last four seasons. But the barometer for success should be whether the Red Sox find a pitcher they’d feel more confident handing the ball to in a playoff game than they did Bello this year.
It’s hard to make the argument that the case is such for Gallen. But at the same time, if the righty is available for far less than Bowden’s speculative asking price, perhaps he shouldn’t be ruled out as a high-upside depth move.
