11 Feb 2019 05:08:24
Hi Guys - Haven't been on here in soooo long. As Spring Training approaches, a lot of teams have needs that are still not filled. And the team who won the Commissioner's trophy in 2018 is who I will be talking about.

I think we can all agree that the Red Sox are the most complete team in the bigs, but they have a massive void to fill - the closer. Craig Kimbrel is one of the top 5 closers of the past decade, and 2018 showed you why.

Here is what I think will happen to Kimbrel: He will sign with the Braves for 5 years 80 million. This means the Red Sox will NOT HAVE Kimbrel in 2019. Personally, I think a perfect option is Raisel Igelsias of the Reds. He had a stellar 2018, and his recent seasons show no signs of regress. He was 30 for 34 in save opportunities while pitching in one of the most hitter-friendly parks in baseball.

While Cincinatti appears to be looking to contend, I think it's unrealistic at this point in the stacked NL Central. Raisel Iglesias was a big part of the limited success they had, but the Reds can replace him with Jared Hughes, who also had a great 2018.

Here is the proposed deal:

Boston gets: Raisel Iglesias

Cincinatti gets: Michael Chavis, Bryan Mata, $200k

1.) 11 Feb 2019
11 Feb 2019 19:49:04
Maybe at trade deadline, I could see the Reds trading Iglesias. But there's no point in them making the moves they made to trade their very good closer right now.

2.) 12 Feb 2019
12 Feb 2019 18:00:23
Reds are now trying to “compete” so there’s no way they are trading their star closer.

3.) 19 Feb 2019
19 Feb 2019 14:29:42
1st, the Sox are not the most complete team in the bigs. Their bullpen is behind some of the others in MLB. I'd say the Yankees, if their rotation is healthy, and the Astros are both more well rounded. That could easily change with a Kimbrel signing. Having him in the 9th slides everyone up in the pecking order and makes them that much more efficient.

I also don't see the Reds moving Iglesias right now, but there are some good young RP out there the Sox might be able to pry away from teams who aren't going to be competing. I do think Iglesias would be a good deadline target if Cincy isn't in the thick of it.