Red Sox: 3 offseason decisions Chaim Bloom wishes he could have back
By Drew Koch
3. The Red Sox should have signed Seiya Suzuki.
Hindsight is always 20/20, and I don’t know if anyone predicted that Seiya Suzuki would be having the start to his major league career that he’s had to this point in the season, but the Boston Red Sox were said to be “aggressively” pursuing the Japanese star.
Instead, Suzuki landed with the Chicago Cubs and has been on an absolute tear since winding up in the Windy City. Suzuki is hitting .343/.520/.743 and has four home runs and 12 RBIs. The Cubbies have a star in their outfield and the Red Sox have Jackie Bradley Jr.
No disrespect to JBJ, whose defense is outstanding. But Boston traded Hunter Renfroe to the Milwaukee Brewers just before the lockout in exchange for Bradley Jr. who’s in the final year of a two-year/$12M pact. Seiya Suzuki signed a five-year/$85M contract with the Cubs.
Alex Verdugo has gotten off to a hot start, and while Kiké Hernandez has yet to hit his stride, one has to assume that he’ll eventually catch up. While Jackie Bradley Jr. might offer better defense and more speed than Hunter Renfroe, he’s a career .230 hitter. Landing Seiya Suzuki might have put the Red Sox in the driver’s seat in the AL East this season.
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