Red Sox MOST EXCITING News: Boston Red Sox hit at former Yankees pitcher, 4 OFs on front office’s radar
Throughout his career, Luetge has experienced numerous highs and lows. Before being outrighted in 2015, he pitched for the Mariners and Triple-A Tacoma from the time of his MLB debut in 2012 with Seattle. Throughout his four seasons with the Mariners, Luetge threw 89 innings, recording a 4.35 ERA and 74 strikeouts.
Luetge was shut out by Seattle, and he didn’t play in the major leagues again until 2021. Earlier that year, the Yankees inked him to a minor-league contract, and the reliever performed so well in spring training that he was included on the Opening Day roster. During his two seasons with New York, Luetge threw 72.1 innings with a 2.71 ERA.
Throughout his career, Luetge has experienced numerous highs and lows. Before being outrighted in 2015, he pitched for the Mariners and Triple-A Tacoma from the time of his MLB debut in 2012 with Seattle. Throughout his four seasons with the Mariners, Luetge threw 89 innings, recording a 4.35 ERA and 74 strikeouts.
Luetge was shut out by Seattle, and he didn’t play in the major leagues again until 2021. Earlier that year, the Yankees inked him to a minor-league contract, and the reliever performed so well in spring training that he was included on the Opening Day roster. During his two seasons with New York, Luetge threw 72.1 innings with a 2.71 ERA.
Lucas Luetge, who the Red Sox have signed, posted a 2.71 ERA, 2.92 FIP and 1.25 WHIP in 107 outings (129 ⅔ innings) for the Yankees in 2021-22 combined https://t.co/AWSOuKbvCx
— masslivesports (@masslivesports) February 11, 2024
The next offseason, the Yankees designated Luetge for assignment and signed Tommy Kahnle. After being moved, he pitched poorly for the Braves. After just 13.2 innings pitched and a 7.24 ERA, he was promptly designated for distribution.
The Red Sox signed former Yankee Lucas Luetge and have an interest in Michael A. Taylor, Tommy Pham, Adam Duvall, and Randal Grichuk.
The Red Sox still need to fill out the outfield to complete their roster for the season in addition to providing depth to the bullpen. Four outfielders—Adam Duvall, Tommy Pham, Michael A. Taylor, and Randal Grichuk—are being watched by the front office. Boston has been eyeing a reunion with Duvall for a few weeks (it was reported by MLB insider Jon Heyman that the Red Sox and Angels were in the bidding for the outfielder). Now, though, as the offseason winds down, it seems like more teams have entered the mix.
According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the Cubs, Giants, Orioles, Diamondbacks, and Twins are all in the market for an outfielder and could be considered a possibility for any of these targets.
Duvall would be the best choice with Boston’s lineup as he played with the team last season and got off to a productive start before injuring his wrist in April. He ended up making 92 appearances for the Sox and hit .247/.303/.531.
Taylor is far and away the best defender of the group. He registered 9 OAA in 2023 and Baseball Savant ranks his arm strength in the 90th percentile. However, Taylor’s bat lacks consistency and he’s a career .239/.294/.389 hitter in 10 seasons in the big leagues.
Pham played for the Red Sox during the second half of the 2022 season, but he had a better showing at the plate with the Mets and Diamondbacks in 2023. The righty batted .256/.328/.446 last season, up from .236/.312/.374 in 2022. He’s a decent fielder, although not as good as Taylor. Baseball Savant ranks Pham’s arm strength in the 69th percentile and he logged -1 OAA last season.
Grichuk played with the Rockies and Angels in 2023. His defense is lacking in comparison to the rest of Boston’s candidates — he posted a -7 OAA last season and his arm strength falls in the 67th percentile. In 2023, he batted .267/.321/.459, his third-best season at the plate in his 10-year career.
If Boston has a preference among the outfield candidates it’s looking at, it should sign one of them soon. If all the teams Rosenthal listed are going to choose from Pham, Duvall, Grichuk, and Taylor to fill in their outfields, some of the clubs are going to be left with nothing. The Red Sox can’t afford to be left behind again.
