Red Stockings chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom met with reporters (including Alex Speier of the Boston Globe) this afternoon and confirmed that the club remains in touch with the representatives of the free agent center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. They will keep in touch until the situation “clears up” itself, Bloom added. Bradley is undoubtedly the best player left in free agency right now. In addition to their involvement in the Bradley market, Bloom noted (via Speier) the Sox can discuss contract renewals with players already on the squad in spring training.
Elsewhere in the AL East:
- Even after you agree to Brett Gardner, the Yankees expects to hand the primary left field task to Clint Frazier, manager Aaron Boone told reporters (via ESPN’s Marly RiveraFrazier, a former top player, took the job with a great .267 / .394 / .511 slash with eight homeruns over 160 at bats in 2020. The 26-year-old has still only played 162 MLB games and has a defensive had some ups and downs, so a reunion with the dependable Gardner provides some sort of safety net for New York.
- Shine pitching prospect Brent Honeywell has been thrown off course by a series of arm injuries and has undergone four elbow surgeries since his last minor league play in September 2017. The 25-year-old is now back in the Major League side and feeling better than he has in years.I’m excited. I am healthy. … Everything is good. After this last one, it was a great help to me, and it was a great relief to my elbow. Everything is supposedly ‘on track’, and we are heading in the right direction, ”Honeywell told reporters (including Adam Berry of MLB.com). There is no specific timetable for the 25-year-old’s return to the game action, but there appears to be a general sense of optimism about Honeywell’s ability to contribute to the league’s level in 2021.