Justin

Wilson

Cotillo writes that the Red Sox are trying to add a left-hander to their bullpen, and notes that Justin Wilson is also a target of the team, among others. Coulombe struggled and dealt with an injury after being dealt to Texas at the deadline, but he’s been one of the better southpaw relievers over the past few seasons prior to those scuffles.

Wilson hasn’t pitched since last Tuesday due to the issue, but he told reporters that he expects to be available for Friday’s series opener against the Nationals. The 37-year-old lefty has posted a solid 2.39 ERA across 26 1/3 innings (33 appearances) this season in his Red Sox debut.

Moore spent most of the last two seasons with the Angels. After two really strong seasons as a reliever, the 35-year-old struggled with injuries in 2024 and pitched to a 5.03 ERA, 1.34 WHIP, and 41 strikeouts in 48 1/3 innings for the Angels. Even with those struggles, Moore has a 3.64 ERA and 246/101 K/BB ratio in 245 innings as a reliever. If he’s healthy, he could compete with Justin Wilson to be the second left-handed reliever along with Aroldis Chapman.

The five potential candidates were specifically highlighted by Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow on Tuesday at the outset of spring training, just a few hours after former stopper Kenley Jansen agreed to a one-year pact with the Angels. Hendriks and Chapman are the clear-cut favorites to secure Boston’s ninth-inning role given their extensive closing experience, but Slaten — who was outstanding last year as a Rule 5 selection — and Whitlock figure to be in the mix for high-leverage roles. Red Sox manager Alex Cora re-affirmed to reporters Tuesday that he would prefer a set closer as opposed to mixing and matching. If healthy, Hendriks seems like the logical choice to win the competition this spring, but he’s thrown just five innings in the big leagues over the past two seasons. It’s a developing situation fantasy managers should monitor once Grapefruit League action kicks off.

The deal has up to $750,000 in performance bonuses based on games pitched. Wilson had Tommy John surgery in May of 2022 and missed the entire 2023 season. He came back this past year and made 60 appearances for the Reds, posting a 5.59 ERA. The 37-year-old does have a career 3.61 ERA over 12 years split between the Pirates, Yankees, Tigers, Cubs, Mets, and Reds, so the Red Sox will hope that he can get back to that level of production after another year removed from surgery.

The “decision stems from a roster crunch, not a move to become outright sellers,” so the Reds will only look to move relievers who will be free agents at the end of the year. That includes players like Lucas Sims, Buck Farmer, Justin Wilson, and Nick Martinez. Veteran right-handers Emilio Pagán and Ian Gibaut are out of options and getting closer to a return, leaving the Reds short on roster spots for relievers they’d like to keep, which is why they might be looking to rearrange deck chairs in their bullpen.

The save was Wilson’s first of the year. With Alexis Diaz unavailable after picking up his 13th save on Friday, Lucas Sims started the ninth inning. Wilson came in with two men on and one out and escaped with the save. Outside of the occasional save, Wilson doesn’t have much fantasy value.

Wilson ended up missing just the minimum stint while dealing with tightness in his left shoulder. The southpaw wasn’t terribly effective with a 5.91 ERA over 10 2/3 frames, but he’ll have a chance to work in the middle innings now that he’s back on the roster. Alex Young was sent down to Triple-A to make room.

The 36-year-old southpaw has seen plenty of action out of the Reds’ bullpen this season, posting an underwhelming 5.91 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and a 14/2 K/BB ratio over 10 2/3 innings in his 16 appearances. It’s not yet clear how long he’s expected to be shelved for. Carson Spiers was recalled from Triple-A Louisville in a corresponding move to replace Wilson in the Reds’ bullpen.

Wilson will also have the potential to earn an additional $1 million in incentives. The 36-year-old southpaw opted out of his contract with the Dodgers earlier in the week, but it didn’t take him long to find a better opportunity. The Reds are very familiar with his work, as he spent parts of the 2021 and 2022 seasons with the club. He’ll land a spot in the team’s Opening Day bullpen.