Bloom conceded the team may struggle without Betts and Price, but will not give up on this seasonGETTY IMAGES
Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom said that the team traded RF Mookie Betts to the Dodgers due to a "need to emphasize the long-term, both by adding young talent to the organization and by improving the team's financial flexibility -- and thus creating more spending options -- moving forward," according to Alex Speier of the BOSTON GLOBE. The "talent base in the upper levels" of the Red Sox' farm system was thin, and the team "saw an opportunity to infuse young talent into the big league roster and upper levels of the system" with the trade. Trading away Betts and P David Price also shed $42M for this season's spending, "allowing the team to get its payroll below" the $208M competitive balance tax threshold. The Red Sox "led the majors in spending" in both '18 and '19, with "increasing luxury tax penalties as a result." By getting under the CBT this year, the Red Sox will "significantly lower the penalties associated with spending past it in future years." Meanwhile, Bloom "shook off the notion that the team was sacrificing the coming year" with the trade. Speier notes the deal was "driven by the willingness to look beyond the immediate season and operate from a long-term perspective." The Red Sox "believe they've done that, but the process to get to that point wasn't smooth or direct" (BOSTON GLOBE, 2/11).
IN FULL BLOOM: In Boston, Sean McAdam noted when Bloom was hired last fall, it was with the "stated intention of ending the franchise's cycle of boom-and-bust." So, it "shouldn't have come as any surprise" that the Red Sox "framed the deal not as a cost-cutting measure, but rather, a way to create sustainability for the club." The organization's "ability to evaluate and project talent will hold the key to the success of the deal." But it still is "hard to escape the notion that this deal was largely money-driven" (BOSTONSPORTSJOURNAL.com, 2/10). Also in Boston, Steve Hewitt writes Bloom's "first major move in charge of the Red Sox may be the biggest move he'll ever make" (BOSTON HERALD, 2/11). MLB Network's Jayson Stark said, "Bloom didn't come there to keep the band together, did he? That's not what he's doing there." MLB Net's Brian Kenny: "This has been the modern way of GM-ing, that you have to be fiscally prudent to be in a good spot moving down the road" ("MLB Now," MLB Network, 2/10).
TEAR DOWN TO BUILD UP: In Boston, Peter Abraham notes trading Betts and Price was something Bloom "would have considered even if the Red Sox were only slightly over" the $208M CBT. Sustainability is the "watchword of the Bloom administration, the notion to always be looking ahead and building a wide talent base instead of putting everything into one season." If the Red Sox can "turn their newfound financial flexibility into a team that wins multiple championships," Bloom will be "proven right." That is why fans "can't judge this trade today" (BOSTON GLOBE, 2/11). Also in Boston, Jason Mastrodonato writes, "What is stopping the Red Sox from stripping down the rest of the roster? Few are naive enough to think the Red Sox will compete with the Yankees, Rays, Astros and Twins with the group they've got now. A bridge year is a swell idea for a big market team that can't afford to lose its fanbase with a last-place finish." There are reasons to look at this season "through the same forward-thinking lens" (BOSTON HERALD, 2/11).
QUESTIONING THE CULTURE: In Boston, Tom Keegan wrote it is "truly remarkable" that the Red Sox traded Betts a year before he becomes eligible for free agency. Keegan: "Talk about surrendering without a fight. ... How can you not just keep him another year, pay the luxury tax, in the neighborhood of $17 million had Betts and Price remained in Red Sox uniforms, and buy yourself more time?" The fact that the team "not once, but twice, pulled the trigger on making a trade that intentionally makes them a lot worse" this year "raises the question of what the (cult)ure is now at Fenway Park" (BOSTON HERALD, 2/10). Also in Boston, Chad Finn writes under the header, "I Guess It's Time We Accept That Mookie Betts Is Gone" (BOSTON GLOBE, 2/11).
UNINTENTED CONSEQUENCES: MLB.com's Mike Petriello said if there is an incentive for teams not to spend, the CBT is "doing the job it's intended to do, which is to reign in some of these teams," though that is "probably a bad idea." If the "end result is that the Red Sox have to trade a future Hall of Famer because of this, then it's not helping baseball" ("MLB Now," MLB Network, 2/10).
