Red Sox take wise gamble on Alexi Ogando
The Boston Red Sox search for pitching depth continued on Friday with the signing of former All-Star Alex Ogando.
According to Fox Sports Ken Rosenthal, it’s a one-year major league deal worth a guaranteed $1.5 million, which is roughly $1 million less than Ogando was projected to earn in arbitration before being non-tendered by the Texas Rangers.
And yes, there’s a good reason why Ogando was non-tendered just three years removed from his All-Star selection. His past two seasons have been riddled with injuries. In 2013, Ogando was limited to 23 appearances (18 starts) because of nerve damage and inflammation in his shoulder, which later morphed into a biceps issue. In 2014, he worked just 25 relief innings due to a sprained ulnar collateral ligament, which is often a precursor to Tommy John surgery.
With that recent injury history in mind, there are obvious concerns that Ogando may not be able to hold up for a full season, either as a starter or reliever, but Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington is wise to take the gamble.
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After subtracting starters Jon Lester and John Lackey from the roster in trades last season, and then failing to lure Lester back in free agency, Cherington has been plucking pitching depth from every which direction. In free agency, he added Justin Masterson. In the trade market, he acquired Rick Porcello and Wade Miley. In a perfect world, those arms will fill out Boston’s starting rotation, along with Clay Buchholz, Joe Kelly and perhaps Brandon Workman. Just in case though, he’s now added a versatile arm in Ogando, who if healthy could fill multiple roles.
According to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe, Ogando already passed his physical with Boston. That indicates he’s ready now and should be a full-go for spring training. Cafardo adds that Ogando will likely be tabbed as Boston’s seventh inning reliever initially, setting up for Edward Mujica and Koji Uehara. That’s obviously not set in stone though, and would be subject to change based on developments over the next two months.
The upside to employing Ogando revolves around the aforementioned versatility. During his healthy stints from his rookie season in 2010 through early 2013, he was able to alternate relief and starting roles without losing any effectiveness. During that span, Ogando posted a 3.12 ERA over 381 innings. He earned his All-Star selection as a starter in 2011, which should give manager John Farrell confidence should they change course.
The downside, of course, is his durability. Even during his effective seasons, Ogando was often sidelined by minor ailments, which may have stemmed from the constant bouncing back and forth. The latter possibility might actually motivate Boston to keep Ogando in one set role. Regardless, at 1.5MM, the rewards and upside far outweigh the risks and potential downside, which makes this deal a likely winner for Cherington.
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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813
