The Boston Red Sox season is all but lost as the club sits 13 games under .500 at 52-65, placing them dead last in the American League East. One of the teams biggest offseason moves was signing left fielder Hanley Ramirez to a monster four-year $88 million contract, a deal which has so far provided mixed results.
As John Tomase of WEEI reported, Boston first baseman David Ortiz was pining for the club to sign a different outfielder for the last two seasons, as the Red Sox slugger wanted the team to sign Nelson Cruz, as Cruz himself said.
“He was all in,” Cruz recalled this weekend. “Anytime we played, he reminded me that he wanted me here. It meant a lot. I’m a fan of him, and also a good friend. When a player like him, a future Hall of Famer, requests for you to play with him, it’s definitely something that grabs you.”
The Red Sox, like many teams, could have had Cruz as a relatively cheap price. He signed a one-year $8 million flier with the Baltimore Orioles in 2014, only to mash 40 home runs for the club. As a free agent again in 2015, he signed another club friendly contract, this time a four-year $57 million deal with the Seattle Mariners. So far this season, he hasn’t declined one bit, leading the entire league with 36 home runs.
SEATTLE, WA – APRIL 19: Nelson Cruz #23 of the Seattle Mariners hits a game winning single to defeat the Texas Rangers 11-10 at Safeco Field on April 19, 2015 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images)
According to a report last month from WEEI’s Ryan Hannable, Cruz knew about Ortiz’s wishes, and wanted to join the Red Sox in both 2014 and 2015, but his interest was rebuffed from Red Sox management.
“Yes, he did. It’s huge,” Cruz said. “I mean he doesn’t make the calls. I guess they listen to him because he’s been with the team for so long and he’s the face of the team, but at the same time it is the GM’s and owners’ call.”
“My agent also tried, but they had their plans,” he added.
Would he have fit in Boston? The club was full of outfield depth in 2014 after winning the World Series in 2013, as they entered the season with Shane Victorino, Jonny Gomes, Mike Carp, Daniel Nava, and Grady Sizemore all on the roster, while Mookie Betts, Rusney Castillo and Jackie Bradley Jr., were all waiting in the wings. In 2015, the Red Sox made a bet on Ramirez being capable of playing every day in left field, but his transition from shortstop to the outfield has been rocky. The team still didn’t lack depth at the position.
So yes, the Red Sox signing Cruz could have helped this year’s club, but there are so many variables to it actually making sense. The reports suggest the club didn’t show the same interest towards the Cruz as the slugger did towards the club. Even if they had made an offer, who knows if it would have been anything close to what he received by the Mariners. It’s a nice idea, but Cruz in a Red Sox uniform didn’t make sense at the time for numerous reasons, even if he seems like ‘the one who got away,’ at the present time.
