The Boston Red Sox have already added to their pitching staff and with plenty of offseason left, there’s still time to explore more options before the start of the 2024 season.
Right-hander Lucas Giolito signed a two-year deal in free agency with the Red Sox, marking the start of Boston’s effort toward rectifying its biggest flaw last season. However, former Major League Baseball general manager Jim Bowden, now of The Atheltic, proposed the Red Sox should pivot toward signing another veteran righty: Mike Clevinger.
Compiling a list of 10 free agents in a matchmaking column, Bowden linked Clevinger to Boston as a “best match” for both sides:
Clevinger went 9-9 last season with a 3.77 ERA and 1.226 WHIP over 24 starts (131 1/3 innings). He was worth 3.3 WAR. He was also pretty consistent, posting a 3.88 ERA over his first 12 starts and a 3.67 ERA over his final 12. The Red Sox have missed out on the top free-agent starters this offseason but could pivot to Clevinger, who is 33 years old and has gone 60-39 with a 3.45 ERA over 788 innings in seven major-league seasons.
Clevinger tossed 131 1/3 innings with the White Sox last season — the second-most on Chicago’s pitching staff. He also led the staff in wins while pitching alongside then-White Sox teammate Giolito.
In Boston, could the two reunite to help polish a rotation in desperate need of improvement?
After trading Chris Sale to the Atlanta Braves for Vaughn Grissom, Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow suggested there’d be no stoppage of looking at other avenues to upgrade the roster this offseason.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora had little-to-no reliability in the 2023 rotation, subjected to calling upon bullpen arms to help make up for a stockpile of injured starters. That proved to not be the ideal situation as it ultimately played a major role in Boston’s downward spiral toward a second straight last-place finish in the American League East.
Clevinger has made two career starts at Fenway Park, allowing a combined seven earned runs through nine innings thrown.
