Montgomery to Red Sox, Jansen trade rumors won’t go away; Sox outbid on Urshela, re-sign Rodriguez

Analyzing the news and rumors of the week as Red Sox spring training continues in Fort Myers. 

Even as the Red Sox prepare to play their first spring training game on Saturday, the rumors connecting them to reigning World Series champion and free agent left-hander Jordan Montgomery simply won’t die.

As reported by Jon Heyman on Bleacher Report’s Walk-Off, the Sox “were definitely talking to Montgomery about two weeks ago. And that did seem to be a consideration, but there has been no movement on that since then.”

Heyman notes the Cubs also remain in the mix — even singling out Montgomery’s friendship with former Yankees teammate turned Chicago starter Jameson Taillon as a potential factor in his decision-making — in addition to the Giants and Angels. 

While this reporting only emerged Thursday, it’s not exactly encouraging that the talks between the Sox and Montgomery took place a couple of weeks ago and haven’t progressed. That leads me to believe Craig Breslow and company aren’t treating Montgomery like a priority and are only interested in bringing him in on team-friendly terms.

Montgomery isn’t even the best remaining free agent pitcher (that would be Blake Snell, whose early-offseason ties to the Sox have disintegrated), and yet the Sox aren’t even willing to budge. That’s disappointing, of course. But what else do we really expect from this bunch?

Kenley’s still in demand 

While I’m not holding my breath over the prospects of Montgomery wearing a Red Sox uniform this season, there is one correlating piece of news that might indicate the team could still make a deal happen.

Tim Kelly at Bleacher Report lists Sox closer Kenley Jansen as one of the most likely players to be traded this season — and the consensus seems to be that it’s more likely to happen sooner than later. 

“It feels like the only way Kenley Jansen isn't traded this summer is if the Boston Red Sox decide to deal him before the start of the season,” Kelly writes. “But with how desperate teams are for relief pitchers, someone will take a shot on Jansen this summer, if not sooner.”

As we’ve heard earlier this winter, the Sox adding another starter seems to be contingent on offloading Jansen’s $16 million salary for 2024. Of course, the Sox can absolutely afford to sign or trade for another starter while continuing to employ Jansen — they’re just being cheap. Even with Jansen and a pitcher like Snell or Montgomery on the roster, they wouldn’t remotely be in jeopardy of crossing the $237 million luxury tax threshold.

It’s worth keeping an eye on the increased buzz around Jansen, though. If he does get moved within the next couple of weeks, the likelihood that the Sox turn around and sign Montgomery or Snell definitely increases.

But again, don’t hold your breath… 

Gio spurns Sox 

Vaughn Grissom can breathe a sign of relief, because Gio Urshela is headed to Detroit… not Boston.

Why? Because the Sox were unwilling to match the extremely lucrative one-year, $1.5 million deal he was reportedly given by the Tigers…

One day after MassLive.com reported the Sox had expressed interest in the former Yankees infielder, Urshela opted to join a Tigers team that went 78-84 and finished second in the AL Central (while Boston went 78-84 and finished last in the AL East).

Urshela isn’t a game-changing talent, although he swings a decent bat with a lifetime .277 batting average. He’s had one very solid year at the dish in 2019 when he hit .314 with career highs of 21 homers and 74 RBIs. He hasn’t been especially productive since, although he did drive in 64 runs in a career-high 144 games with Minnesota in 2022.

Still, bringing in Urshela at minimal cost could have been a nice way to push Grissom a little, or to give him a little more time to develop and eventually win the job from Urshela. Instead, the Sox seem content to toss Grissom into the fire and hope for the best. 

Guess who’s back? 

Finally, the Red Sox have brought in a relief pitcher who is ready and able to pitch this season.

Unfortunately, that pitcher is Joely Rodriguez…

Rodriguez’s 2023 season was injury-plagued, but he didn’t show much promise when he actually did pitch either. A career-high 6.55 ERA in 11 innings over 11 games and a putrid 1.73 WHIP led to Boston declining his option last November. 

About the only thing going for him as far as his fit with the Red Sox is concerned is that he pitches with his left hand. They only have four left-handers on the 40-man roster, none of which are starters.

Rodriguez had his most appearances to date the season before last, appearing in 55 games with the Mets in 2022. Even then, he wasn’t particularly impressive — he finished 2-4 with a 4.47 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP.

This is a career 4.70 ERA pitcher we’re talking about, after all. Rodriguez is only joining the organization on a minor league contract, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him start the year in Worcester.