Boston Red Sox to sign Ramirez and Sandoval – but they really need pitching

The news was only barely out that the Boston Red Sox had signed former Los Angeles Dodgers infielder Hanley Ramirez, to a deal rumored to be in the five-year/$90m range, when the news of a possibly even bigger transaction emerged. In addition to Ramirez, the Red Sox were on the verge of signing yet another of the offseason’s major free agents, San Francisco Giants third baseman Pablo Sandoval, to a similarly sized contract. These signings are big news, to be sure, but they raise more questions than they answer about what the 2015 Red Sox will look like.

The 28-year-old Sandoval would probably count as the bigger of the two splashes, in more ways than one, having gained a bigger profile than Ramirez, thanks to the Giants’ three World Series wins in the last five years. His three home run performance in Game 1 of the 2012 World Series will go down as one of the most impressive single games an MLB player has ever had in the Fall Classic. While his on-base percentage isn’t sterling by the Red Sox’s standards – he had a .324 OBP last season – he’s one of the best bad-ball hitters in the league. He’s a fine defensive player despite his large frame, the basis of his “Kung Fu Panda” nickname.

Ramirez, 30, might be a more intriguing story for Boston, however. Ramirez was once the star shortstop in the Red Sox system, but he only had a cup of coffee playing for the big club. Instead, Ramirez’s primary rolewas, until now, being one the two key players, along with starting pitcher Anibal Sanchez, in the 2005 trade that brought back starting pitcher Josh Beckett and third baseman Mike Lowell from the Florida Marlins.

It was one of those trades that more than worked out for both teams. Beckett and Lowell were the MVPs of the 2007 American League Championship Series and the 2007 World Series respectively. Ramirez, meanwhile, blossomed into a three-time all-star for the then-Florida Marlins before being traded to the Dodgers in 2012. When the Dodgers pulled off their still vaguely miraculous turnaround in 2013, it was Ramirez’s eye-popping 1.040 OPS (on-base percentage combined with slugging percentage) that many pointed towards as being the number one factor.

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) November 24, 2014

The @RedSox get one of the best right-handed hitters in Hanley Ramírez: pic.twitter.com/1KXQ8omCVQ

As with all long-term signings in the MLB, both deals come with risks. Ramirez’s clubhouse reputation is not perfect. He was accused of diva-like behavior during his time with the Marlins. He has missed a lot of games in the last few seasons, that lofty OPS in 2013 was only over the span of 86 games, mostly due to injuries. While he’s a great offensive talent, that doesn’t matter when he’s not available to hit. That isn’t exactly promisingfor a player who will be 31 at the start of a five-year contract.

Meanwhile, Sandoval isn’t quite as great of a player as his postseason performances suggest. His popularity has probably been inflated by his jovial on-field persona, which has made fans ignore the notable slumps he’s experienced as a result of his contact-dependent hitting approach. His large frame has caused concerns about his conditioning, although to date he has shown surprising on-field agility.

And where exactly will Boston put them? Ramirez’s defensive liabilities probably preclude him from being an everyday shortstop. While having Ramirez play third base could have been an option before the Sandoval signing, that seems highly unlikely now.

If, somehow, the Red Sox decide to take the defensive hit and play Sandoval at third and Ramirez at short, it throws the rest of the current lineup into something of disarray. Most intriguingly, this lineup would leave the future of Xander Bogaerts, a potential superstar who has played both positions with some success already, in doubt.

Many MLB insiders believe that the Red Sox could move Ramirez to the less demanding defensive position of left-field, although the career infielder has only played the outfield during winter ball. It’s a solution to a self-created problem that would make more sense if the Red Sox didn’t already have a glut of outfielders on the roster (Yoenis Cespedes, Rusney Castillo, Mookie Betts, Shane Victorino, Allen Craig, Jackie Bradley Jr).

First base also isn’t entirely out of the question. But the Red Sox would have to move current starting first baseman Mike Napoli, one of their best players these last two seasons.

Pitching problem

These signings only highlight the fact that the 2015 Red Sox have serious starting pitching needs. Seeing that they were going nowhere in the 2014 season, they shopped staff ace Jon Lester to the Athletics, from whom they received Cespedes. They then sent John Lackey to the St Louis Cardinals for Allen Craig and pitcher Joe Kelly. These moves came after the Red Sox already had traded Jake Peavy to the Giants, where he won his second straight World Series ring, for prospects.

All of this movement left the enigmatic Clay Buchholz as their presumptive ace. He struggled mightily, ending the season with an unwieldly 5.34 ERA and a not at all deceptive 8-11 win/loss record.

Interestingly, Jon Lester is a free agent now, which means all it would take would be the right amount of money and years for Boston to get him back. If one former top Red Sox prospect can return to the franchise that developed him, why not Lester? Well, if comments Lester made after the 2010 MLB all-star Game after an innocent-if-ridiculous question about going out for pizza with his former team-mate are any indication, it doesn’t sound as if Lester is particularly big on Ramirez:

I’d have a better chance of being struck by lightning than me and him getting a pizza together. You can take that for what it’s worth. But there was no chance on God’s green earth that I was getting a pizza with him.

Fond memories of his time playing alongside Ramirez aren’t going to lure Lester back to Boston. Furthermore, there are rumors that losing out on Sandoval may mean the Giants will make a revenge run on the veteran lefty. Boston may have to focus on different starting pitchers. Kansas City’s James Shields perennially gets mentioned as the first runner-up.

There’s a strong possibility that the Red Sox may not go the free agent route. Considering the potential logjams in the outfield, and possibly at first base, they could aim to make a trade or three for pitching. Cespedes has only one year left on an inexpensive rookie contract, making him the most likely member of the roster to be moved. If there’s no room for him in the near future, Bogaerts, probably the team’s best hitting prospect since Ramirez, could be enough on his own to pry a front-line starter from another ballclub.

The Red Sox need to do something because they cannot stand pat. The signings don’t make much sense if they don’t make a huge upgrade in the starting rotation before opening day. The Ramirez and Sandoval acquisitions make it clear the Sox won’t be rebuilding next season, but they won’t be heading to the postseason with Buchholz and Kelly as their No1 and No2 options.

The Red Sox front office should know first-hand that grabbing big-name offensive players isn’t enough. The last time the Red Sox won the offseason, it turned into a two-year long debacle. Four years ago they traded for first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and signed outfielder Carl Crawford, making them the centerpieces of what looked like would be a lineup for the ages.

Instead, the 2011 Sox underwent one of the worst collapses in baseball history, missing the postseason despite having a nine-game lead in the American League East in September. The next season, the Sox ended up dumping Gonzalez and Crawford, along with their massive contracts, to the Dodgers in the midst of one of the worst regular seasons in team history. A season later, a much more anonymous Red Sox roster managed to win the World Series on the strength of their pitching staff.

The front office is fooling only itself if it thinks Boston fans have forgotten the lessons of the last four years. They know signing big-name hitters like Sandoval and Ramirez might help the Red Sox steal headlines in November, but that won’t help them win next October.