4 Boston Red Sox free agents who won't be back in 2025 and why

Once upon a time, specifically around the middle of July and the All-Star break, the Boston Red Sox were riding high. Alex Cora's club was given better than a 50% chance to make the playoffs by FanGraphs, they were in the second AL Wild Card spot, and the vibes could not have been better for a team that was one of the most fun surprises in baseball.

Things have changed dramatically over the next two months. Entering Wednesday's matchup with the Rays, the Red Sox had a 1% chance of making the postseason with one of the worst records in baseball since the break. And really, even those minuscule odds felt like giving Boston too much of a chance.

It's not a completely lost season, to be sure, even with the disappointment in the second half. The Red Sox discovered core pieces beyond Rafael Devers and Triston Casas, players like Jarren Duran, Cedanne Rafaela, Tanner Houck and others, who can comprise this team's core moving forward while others may have raised their trade value. But this is also a roster that needs reinforcements to come in to get over the hump.

At the same time, they will also need to trim the fat. There are too many players who, for one reason or another, have not shown anything to say they should be part of the future. These four Red Sox who will be free agents after this season, in particular won't and/or shouldn't be back with the club for the 2025 season — and no, we won't be cheating by putting a guy like James Paxton on this list after he announced his plans to retire.

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4. RP Luis Garcia was a trade deadline dud of the highest degree

Plenty of Red Sox fans were critical of Craig Breslow's first trade deadline, even if they were delighted to see some sort of activity, which had been missing in the Chaim Bloom era. However, it would've been nice if those additions had paid off, specifically when you look at a player like Luis Garcia, who was brought in from the Angels to bolster a shaky bullpen.

Rather than that, Garcia exacerbated the issue. In 11 appearances with Boston before landing on the IL, Garcia had an abysmal 10.32 ERA with a 1.94 WHIP. Every time he took the mound, it was a hold-your-breath moment for Red Sox fans in hopes that another massive blowup wasn't coming — though it unfortunately was most of the time.

To give Breslow some credit here, there's no way anyone could've seen that type of performance coming after Garcia had a 3.71 ERA and 1.17 WHIP with the Angels over 45 outings this year.

However, that performance with Boston is more than enough to play his way off of the 2025 roster and, hopefully, completely out of the picture. The bullpen should be a heavy focus for the Red Sox this offseason in free agency, the trade market, and even getting more looks at the likes of Zach Penrod and Luis Guerrero. But Garcia made certain that he wore out his welcome quickly with this club.

3. C Danny Jansen should be gone to make way for Kyle Teel

Speaking of the trade deadline, the Red Sox offense had been humming coming up to that point but the one thing that was highlighted as an obvious need was a right-handed bat and there were several enticing options that appeared to be available. For whatever reason, though, Breslow elected to add catcher Danny Jansen from the Blue Jays when that's one of the few spots where Boston had a hot righty bat in Connor Wong.

And really, it was hard to justify the move then and that remains the case. Since joining Boston, Jansen has slashed a dismal .191/.329/.324. Sure, he made MLB history in a resumed game against his former team but that's been about it, especially for a player who didn't even provide meaningful defensive upgrades behind the dish as well.

That alone would be reason enough to not consider bringing Jansen back next season. However, Kyle Teel, the organization's first-round pick in 2023, makes it even more obvious. He was promoted to Triple-A Worcester in mid-August as part of the Big 3 (which has since become a Big 4 thanks to Kristian Campbell) and has flashed alredy there with an up-and-down performance but 17 RBI over 25 games.

Teel should get the first look with Wong for the catchers on the roster on Opening Day. And Jansen should be nowhere near that conversation.

2. RP Chris Martin doesn't quite make sense for the 2025 Red Sox

Though injuries and time away from the team have removed Chris Martin from the equation at times in the 2024 season, the veteran reliever has been one of the most reliable arms out of the bullpen when he's been available. On the whole, he's posted a 3.43 ERA and 1.09 WHIP across 40 appearances this year.

Martin, however, is a tricky proposition for the Red Sox this offseason. He'll turn 39 years old in June next season, so there's an inherent risk that his best days could be behind. Furthermore, with another aging veteran in the bullpen who's also set to hit free agency, Kenley Jansen, the financial investments from the organization could dictate making a decision on which one to keep. Jansen seems like the more obvious option to avoid relying solely on Liam Hendriks returning from Tommy John surgery as the closer in 2025.

As such, it seems more likely that they let Martin walk while pursuing higher long-term upside propositions (along with Jansen) that are also more cost-effective so that the amount of John Henry's money that Breslow is allowed to fork out this offseason is ultimately better spent.

1. SP Nick Pivetta has run his course in Boston

On the whole, the numbers from veteran Red Sox starter Nick Pivetta don't look all that bad, sitting with a 4.37 ERA and 1.13 WHIP on the season at 31 years old — though the 5-11 record he's posted certainly leaves a lot to be desired.

However, any Red Sox fan can tell you that's not nearly indicative of the true Pivetta experience whenever he pitches. Yes, he can undoubtedly give you eight shutout innings on any given night. He is also equally as likely to get run off of the mound before the end of the second inning as well. Even worse, that hot-and-cold nature doesn't just go game-to-game but also inning-to-inning. How many times have fans watched three or so elite innings only to then see him give up two bombs to the next two batters he sees?

Boston undeniably found something of a foundation for their pitching staff this season with Houck, Brayan Bello and even guys like Kutter Crawford, even if they were inconsistent in their own right. Pivetta, meanwhile, didn't change at all and, at 31 years old, seems unlikely to at this point. Pitching will be the offseason priority and, especially with Lucas Giolito set to finally debut in 2025, that should certainly mean the end of the line for Pivetta.