The Purple Sox and Marlins swapped relievers Monday afternoon, with righty Matt Barnes dealt to Miami for southpaw Richard Bleier. Boston can be reportedly sending a bit greater than $5.5MM in money within the deal to make the transaction almost cash-neutral.
Barnes, 32, was designated for task by the Purple Sox final week following the completion of a one-year, $7MM settlement with outfielder Adam Duvall. He served as Boston’s major nearer in 2021, incomes a team-leading 24 saves. The 2021 marketing campaign, nonetheless, was one thing of a story of two seasons for Barnes. He dominated to the tune of a 2.25 ERA and a 42% strikeout price by Aug. 4. Barnes was spectacular sufficient that the Sox inked him to a two-year, $18.75MM extension in early July.
Over the ultimate two months of the 2022 season, nonetheless, Barnes not solely struggled however melted down in catastrophic style. He pitched simply 10 2/3 innings from Aug. 5 onward, yielding a dozen runs on 17 hits and 9 walks with 16 strikeouts alongside the way in which. It was a calamitous finish to a what had begun as among the best seasons amongst all Main League relievers.
Barnes hoped to proper the ship in 2022 however promptly misplaced the nearer’s job early within the yr when he stumbled to a 7.94 ERA by the tip of Might. The precise-hander was all the time going to be a lot decrease among the many staff’s high-leverage concerns in 2023, following the December additions of Kenley Jansen and Chris Martin — a pair of strikes that was largely necessitated by Barnes’ struggles.
Nonetheless, it’s value mentioning that Barnes completed on a excessive word that probably intrigued Miami and different golf equipment. He was on the injured checklist from early June by early August as a result of shoulder irritation, and upon returning, he appeared way more just like the Barnes of previous. Starting on Aug. 4 — the identical level at which he started to battle a yr prior — Barnes pitched 22 2/3 innings of 1.59 ERA ball and picked up 4 saves. His 21.1% strikeout price was half that of his dominant 2021 kind, nevertheless it was nonetheless an encouraging word on which to finish the season.
Barnes may finally get a recent probability to carve out some save alternatives in Miami, although Dylan Floro is the present projected frontrunner for that gig. Floro labored to a 3.02 ERA throughout 53 2/3 innings with the Marlins in 2022, and he has efficiently transformed 25 save makes an attempt over the past two years. Barnes tallied solely eight saves in 2022 and completed with a 4.31 ERA in 39 2/3 frames. He’ll add fairly a bit extra bat-missing potential to a staff that ranked thirteenth amongst MLB golf equipment with a 24% strikeout price from its aid corps in 2022, although the draw back is clear.
Bleier, in the meantime, can fill the Sox’s want for left-handed bullpen assist, whilst he enters his age-36 season. The veteran southpaw has registered a 3.09 ERA in 125 1/3 innings because the starting of 2020, and he’s held left-handed batters to a .225/.260/.313 slash line since he first reached the most important leagues with the Yankees in 2016. Boston traded lefty Josh Taylor to the Royals in change for Adalberto Mondesi, despatched veteran Jake Diekman (signed by 2023) to the White Sox finally yr’s commerce deadline and misplaced Darwinzon Hernandez to the Orioles through waivers earlier this offseason — all of which had thinned out the staff’s left-handed depth within the ’pen.
They’ll get some high quality left-handed innings out of Bleier, though regardless of his sturdy observe file there are some pink flags of word. The soft-tossing southpaw has by no means missed many bats, however final yr’s 14.4% strikeout price was his lowest since 2019. Bleier has, previously, offset his lack of whiffs with huge ground-ball charges. Nevertheless, whereas final yr’s 52.5% mark was sturdy relative to the league-average, it was nowhere near the 63.5% profession mark he carried into the 2022 season. Bleier has additionally recurrently averted exhausting contact, however final yr’s 89.6 mph exit velocity and 40.8% hard-hit price had been each his worst showings because the aforementioned 2016 debut.
Barnes will make $7.5MM in 2023 and is due no less than a $2.25MM buyout on a 2024 membership possibility valued at $8MM. Bleier is due $3.25MM for the upcoming season and has a $3.75MM membership possibility with a $250K buyout for subsequent yr. Barnes is assured $9.75MM from right here on out whereas Bleier will make no less than $3.75MM. The Sox are masking the majority of that $6MM hole with the $5.5MM+ money consideration.
The Sox will save a minuscule amount of cash and usher in a center reliever with a stable total observe file and a few significantly encouraging numbers towards fellow lefties — even when Bleier comes with some potential areas of concern. That he might be managed by 2024 through that reasonably priced $3.75MM possibility is icing on the cake.
As for the Marlins, they’ll add extra late-inning upside to their bullpen with this swap at virtually no extra value. Followers might bristle at transport out the reliever with higher surface-level numbers for what quantities to a Barnes reclamation mission, however the Fish are keen to gamble on the youthful, harder-throwing Barnes in hopes of unlocking a high-leverage reliever who might be managed affordably by the 2024 season through that $8MM possibility. And, if Barnes is certainly in a position to spherical again into kind, he’ll give Miami an fascinating arm to place available on the market this summer time in the event that they’re decisively out of postseason rivalry.
Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic first reported the Marlins had been buying Barnes. Craig Mish of SportsGrid reported that Boston was buying Bleier in return. Jordan McPherson of the Herald was first to relay that Miami was receiving money concerns, which Mish pegged within the $5MM vary. Chris Coitllo of MassLive was first to report the money concerned was a bit above $5.5MM.
