MLB season preview: Will the Red Sox’s offseason lead to success?

Editor’s Note: With the arrival of baseball season we’re previewing each MLB team, from worst to best. We’ll look at their key offseason moves, projected lineup, best and worst possible outcomes plus examine the team’s fantasy implications with the help of friends from Roto Arcade. Our daily series continues with No. 10: The Boston Red Sox.

Despite a last place finish in the American League East, the Boston Red Sox were one of the most aggressive teams in free agency. The club struck early, picking up ace David Price on a mega-deal, and trading away four prospects for Craig Kimbrel.

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It’s tough to ignore that much talent, even when you consider the Red Sox only won 78 games last season. With that said, there are reasons for optimisim. The team may have disappointed, but individual players made big strides.

Mookie Betts and Xander Bogaerts emerged as stars, while Eduardo Rodriguez proved he could hack it in a big league rotation. David Ortiz remained effective despite his age, while Blake Swihart and Jackie Bradley Jr. showed promising flashes at the end of the season.

Then, there’s Pablo Sandoval, Hanley Ramirez and Rick Porcello. Each player experienced incredible lows during their first seasons in Boston, but none of them can be that bad moving forward, right?

The Red Sox certainly hope so. Modest improvements from those players, combined with the continued development of the young core could lead to lead this club back to the playoffs. Especially if this year’s offseason spending spree works out better than the last one. (Chris Cwik)

Key additions: David Price, Craig Kimbrel, Carson Smith

Key subtractions: Wade Miley, Rich Hill

The Red Sox refused to stand pat after a disappointing 2015. The club made two of the most shocking moves of the offseason, signing David Price to a massive deal and later trading for closer Craig Kimbrel. It’s hard to ignore those moves, especially after the Red Sox’s pitching woes last year. Carson Smith may not be a household name just yet, but he was fantastic last season, and boasts a 32.4 percent strikeout rate. The team could miss Miley’s innings, but he wasn’t particularly good last year. And while Hill was fantastic in four starts with the club, there are some big questions as to whether he can replicate any of that success moving forward. (Cwik)

Blake Swihart: Swihart was quickly emerging as one of the best prospects in the game before Christian Vazquez’s injury caused the club to rush him to the majors in May. Considering he had only received 151 plate appearances in Triple-A prior to his call-up, it wasn’t really a surprise when he struggled initially.

Those struggles didn’t last. Over the second half of the season, Swihart hit .303/.353/.452 over 168 plate appearances. While that’s a small sample, there’s some proof he altered his approach. Swihart started using the whole field more, and not just pulling the ball. He also cut down on his ground balls, hitting more line drives and elevating the ball more. Combine those things with his strong prospect pedigree, and Swihart could emerge as one of the club’s better hitters this season if all goes well. (Cwik)

Lineup:
1. Mookie Betts, OF (.291/.341/.479, 92 R, 18 HR, 77 RBI, 21 SB)
2. Dustin Pedroia, 2B (.291/.356/.441, 46 R, 12 HR, 42 RBI)
3. David Ortiz, DH (.273/.360/.553, 73 R, 37 HR, 108 RBI)
4. Xander Bogaerts, SS (.320/.355/.421, 84 R, 7 HR, 81 RBI, 10 SB)
5. Hanley Ramirez, 1B (.249/.291/.426, 59 R, 19 HR, 53 RBI)
6. Pablo Sandoval, 3B (.245/.292/.366, 43 R, 10 HR, 47 RBI)
7. Rusney Castillo, OF (.253/.288/.359, 35 R, 5 HR, 29 RBI)
8. Blake Swihart, C (.274/.319/.392, 47 R, 5 HR, 31 RBI)
9. Jackie Bradley, OF (.249/.335/.498, 43 R, 10 HR, 43 RBI)

Rotation:
1. David Price (18-5, 2.45 ERA, 220.1 IP, 225 K)
2. Clay Buchholz (7-7, 3.26 ERA, 113.1 IP, 107 K)
3. Rick Porcello (9-15, 4.92 ERA, 172 IP, 149 K)
4. Joe Kelly (10-6, 4.82 ERA, 134.1 IP, 110 K)
5. Roenis Elias (5-8, 4.14 ERA, 115.1 IP, 97 K)

Compiled by Kyle Ringo

A lot is going to ride on Boston’s starting rotation. If Clay Buchholz can stay healthy and make 30-plus starts, and if Rick Porcello and Joe Kelly can get on track, Boston will be the class of the AL East and a legit World Series contender. That might be a lot to ask, but an improved rotation to go with their offense looks like a 95-win team. (Mark Townsend)

The pitching doesn’t come around and they’re left scrambling again to fill spots. Their floor has been low recently with three last place finishes in four seasons, but the addition of David Price at least gives them stability at the top. That will raise their floor a bit, meaning they shouldn’t fall below .500 or third place in a good division. (Townsend)

Which version of Hanley Ramirez do we see this year? It might be hard to remember given how the year ended, but Ramirez’s return to the Red Sox blasted off to a monster start (10 homers, .293/.341/.659 slash in April). Alas, Ramirez injured his shoulder in early May and it was all downhill after that — at the plate and especially in left field. The hope is that a healthy Ramirez will go back to his mashing ways, and that a new position — first base — won’t be a major distraction (or a carnival of errors). Ramirez can’t be viewed as a sure thing entering his age-32 season, but you have a ton of room for potential profit at a reasonable 119 ADP.

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What’s going on at third base? While the Red Sox are cautiously optimistic about Hanley Ramirez’s comeback prospects, they don’t seem particularly rosy about Pablo Sandoval 2.0. The Panda suffered through a nightmare debut in Boston (.245/.292/.366, just 10 homers) and the team isn’t guaranteeing him the third base job. While Brock Holt has proven to be a capable starter when needed, the club considers him more of a utility man. The biggest challenge to Sandoval is probably Travis Shaw, who conked 13 home runs in 226 at-bats last year. Don’t be surprised if Sandoval is a platoon player, at best, all through 2016. (Scott Pianowski)

Before signing a mega deal with the Boston Red Sox as a free agent this offseason, David Price joked on Twitter that he was going to go play for a team in Japan. Here’s hoping that all that money and the expectations that come with it in Boston doesn’t change the way @DAVIDprice24 approaches social media. In between all the tweets about his alma matter Vanderbilt, you’ll find that his dog, Astro, also happens to be a big star and that Price likes to keep it loose and is constantly engaging with fans. (Israel Fehr)

On to LA for a wedding…I really hope my tux fits! I never try stuff on..could be real bad

— David Price (@DAVIDprice24) December 31, 2015

Love him or hate him, it’s David Ortiz’s final season in the majors. It’s been one heck of a career. After showing some promise in Minnesota, Ortiz exploded in Boston. Few full-time DHs are in the Hall of Fame, but Ortiz has built an interesting case. Some think he’s already there, while others may still be skeptical. Through 19 seasons, Ortiz has compiled a .284/.378/.547 slash line, with 503 career home runs. Anything he does at this point only pads his resume. Despite his age, he remains incredibly effective. With another good season, he could convince some of the doubters. (Cwik)