What Craig Breslow said about Red Sox’ pitching needs, trading top prospects at Winter Meetings

Red Sox

“I’ve been pretty outspoken, pretty vocal about the need for us to improve starting pitching.”

Craig Breslow and the Red Sox have plenty of work to do at the 2023 Winter Meetings. (Photo by Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

With the 2023 MLB Winter Meetings in full swing in Nashville, Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow appeared on MLB Network Monday afternoon to discuss Boston’s offseason plans before holding court with local media at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center. 

Here are a few highlights from Breslow’s spot with Chris Russo and his comments to local media.

On the prowl for pitching

In a far-from-shocking development, pitching remains the top priority for Breslow and the rest of Boston’s front-office personnel this winter.

A dearth of both elite talent and innings-eating options in Boston’s rotation played a major role in the Red Sox’ third last-place finish in four seasons in 2023.

The Red Sox ranked 21st in MLB in team ERA at 4.52, and questions regarding the health of returning pitchers like Chris Sale and Garrett Whitlock will continue to linger into the 2024 campaign.

Given Boston’s glaring Achilles heel on the mound, Breslow once again stressed that the Red Sox plan on leaving no stone unturned when it comes to adding to their pitching.

“I’ve been pretty outspoken, pretty vocal about the need for us to improve starting pitching,” Breslow said on MLB Network. “I think that can come through multiple channels. One thing we need to do is understand how our internal guys can take a step forward. We also need to pursue the trade markets and free agency, so we’re actively engaged in all three of those and need to figure out a way to have more consistent starting pitching.”

Considering that the Red Sox are currently just under $50 million short of reaching the first CBT threshold of $237 million, Breslow and his team have the means of doling out a few hefty contracts this winter — especially if it lands a prized free-agent pitcher like Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, or Jordan Montgomery. 

As for the top free-agent prize on the market in Shohei Ohtani?

“Not going to get into specific players — can recognize he’s a generational talent and he makes anybody better,” Breslow told Russo of Ohtani.

With other top-flight pitchers like Chicago’s Dylan Cease and Milwaukee’s Corbin Burnes potentially available via trade, Breslow is also not shying away from adding talent by way of a blockbuster swap. 

“I think we have to pursue both of those markets in parallel,” Breslow told Russo of assessing both free-agent and trade targets. “Because trades can come together really really quickly. And also free agency requires a partnership, a fit on both sides.

“And so we’re going to do both of those things. The one thing that I can pretty confidently say is that controllable starting pitching is a premium. And it’s something that we need to work really, really hard to develop internally over time as well.”

Dealing top prospects?

Of course, you need to give to get when it comes to acquiring elite talent for your MLB roster.

And if the Red Sox realistically want to pluck a starter like Cease out of Chicago and potentially acquire a slugger dangling out on the trade market like Juan Soto, Breslow will need to part ways with at least a few of Boston’s prized prospects. 

Boston’s farm system flourished under Chaim Bloom, with the strides of youngsters like Marcelo Mayer, Roman Anthony, Kyle Teel, Ceddanne Rafaela, and Miguel Bleis offering hope for the future — even if the immediate results for the big-league club left a lot to be desired.

The Red Sox’ path toward a sustainable contender in the years ahead hinges on internal star talent flourishing (especially on affordable contracts). But if a top prospect is the asking price to acquire a proven MLB star in 2024, Breslow isn’t going to stand pat … at least if it’s the proper return.

“The player development and scouting groups have done a great job in amassing position player depth,” Breslow said, per MLB.com’s Ian Browne.  “I think for the right deal, the answer is yes, we need to be willing to give up position player capital in order to to get starting pitching and controllable starting pitching because it takes time for that pipeline to develop internally.”

Retaining free agents

While most of the focus on the Red Sox this winter revolves around them adding talent to the roster, Breslow and Co. have a few decisions to make when it comes to re-signing free agents like Justin Turner and Adam Duvall.

While the emergence of younger outfielders like Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu could push Duvall out in Boston, Turner was an impact bat and valuable clubhouse presence last season for the Red Sox — with the 39-year-old veteran capable of playing several infield positions along with regular starts at DH.

“Well, without diving too deeply into specific players — I think we’re open to any path that improves the club,” Breslow told Russo of Turner and Duvall. “Both of those guys had successful runs and I think it was apparent the impact they had on the clubhouse in addition to the field.

“And certainly guys that ingratiated themselves to our fan base in a really, really short order. So keeping conversations open and like I said, our job is to try and seek any opportunity to improve the team in any way that we can.”

A skeptical fan base?

Even with the optimism that a new season offers, Breslow did field a question from Russo regarding the perception of the Red Sox organization from a fanbase that has seen the team toil near the bottom of the AL East standings for the last few seasons.

Even though those lackluster finishes and offseasons marred by inactivity or under-the-radar signings have left some Red Sox fans apathetic toward the state of their ballclub, Breslow believes that such sentiment can turn in short order.

“I think there’s a feeling that we have to uphold the standard that Red Sox fans and that the Red Sox organization has come to realize over so much success over the past two decades,” Breslow said. “What that looks like, I think we’re still trying to figure out.

“I do think that there’s a sense, a real appetite for us to be as competitive as we possibly can be in ‘24, but also beyond. … So we don’t want this to be kind of a flash in the pan, we want to make sure we’re accomplishing both the short term and the long term interests of the organization.”