I can’t believe I just woke up to this. I’m never sleeping again.

Initial thoughts:

Chaim Bloom made the right move dealing Benintendi. He has shown the tools that evaluators once dreamt on aren’t something his game offers anymore.

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Since the moment Benintendi was drafted, he was pegged as a future batting champ who could offer 20 HRs/SBs on a yearly basis with the ability to play all 3 OF spots.

The truth is, he’s hit 20 HRs once (2017), stolen 20 bags twice (2017, 2018) with...

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...his speed/athleticism regressing over that time, and has posted a career batting average of .273.

Not to mention, his career OPS+ of 107 is just 8 points higher than that of new #RedSox Franchy Cordero.

Even if Benintendi were to bounce back, he’s limited to LF and has a...

track record of a slightly above-average bat. That’s just not a very valuable asset overall. Especially, if Benintendi returned in 2021 with the #RedSox to be anything other than his 2018 version of himself.

Most metrics don’t support that kind of bounce back either. #MLB

Cordero has done nothing close to Benintendi in the bigs, but fits the future of this club well.

Cordero struggled with a number of injuries in recent years and hasn’t found his footing in both the field and at the plate without any consistent playing time. Valid concerns. #MLB

There’s been signs of a Cordero breakthrough being on the horizon for a few years now, but he needs to be on the field to do so. He offers a rare power/speed combo that isn’t easy to find.

He’ll be able to play all 3 OF spots and won’t need to only hit to bring value.

His speed and versatility offer components to the game the #RedSox value highly.

Alex Cora has talked constantly this offseason about the importance of playing fast and being athletic. That’s a big part of Cordero’s game.

While dreaming about Cordero’s upside is exciting...

...I wouldn’t bank on him becoming the next star or some kind of franchise player. If everything clicks, anything is possible, but most likely he offers a well-rounded package of tools that should lead to him producing on a somewhat similar level as Benintendi most years. #RedSox

That doesn’t even include the other parts of the deal, such as Josh Winckowski coming over from the #Mets, who saw his stuff take a considerable jump in 2020.

Reminds me a lot of Seabold, but with more potential upside if he can maintain and develop his newfound splitter/velo.

Lastly, don’t judge this deal before seeing the PTBNL (2 from #Royals, 1 from the #Mets).

While it’s rough to sit and wait for these details to come to light, Chaim Bloom and the #RedSox front office has been great at plucking talent out of organizations.

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It may be hard to see the full picture here, but this type of move accelerates the #RedSox towards their competitive window. This team is in an awkward middle-ground in 2021. Continuing to deepen the farm system sets them up to go BIG the next few offseasons.

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