During the offseason, the Boston Red Sox are looking to add starting pitching as well as infield depth and a right-handed bat; there’s speculation that the bat will be an outfielder who can also DH so that way they can mix and match with Masataka Yoshida and now they have been linked to two right-handed hitters who are free agents in Jorge Soler and now Teoscar Hernandez.
Right-Handed Bats By The Numbers
Jorge Soler
Soler started his career with the Chicago Cubs and spent three seasons there; he slashed .258/.328/.434 with a .762 OPS; he had 35 doubles, two triples, 27 home runs, 98 RBI, 87 runs scored, four stolen bases, and 69 walks. Following the 2016 season, the Cubs traded him to the Kansas City Royals, where he spent five seasons slashing .236/.328/.471 with a .800 OPS; he had 80 doubles, one triple, 80 home runs, 212 RBI, 184 runs scored, six stolen bases, and 170 walks. In 2021, the Royals traded him to the Atlanta Braves, and Soler would help the Braves to a World Series title as Soler slashed .269/.358/.524 with a .882 OPS; Soler had 11 doubles, 14 home runs, 33 RBI, 36 runs scored, and 29 walks. He would sign with the Miami Marlins before the 2022 season and spent ’22 and 2023 with the Marlins slashing .235/.325/.473 with a .798 OPS; he had 37 doubles, 49 home runs, 109 RBI, 109 runs scored, one stolen base, and 97 walks. His career slash line is .243/.330/.467 with a .797 OPS; Soler has 163 doubles, three triples, 170 home runs, 452 RBI, 416 runs scored, 11 stolen bases, and 365 walks. In his career at Fenway, he has a slash line of .269/.350/.519 with a .870 OPS; he has four doubles, three home runs, eight RBI, and six walks in 13 games.
Teoscar Hernandez
Hernandez has played in the big leagues for eight seasons, starting his career with the Houston Astros playing there for two years; he slashed .230/.304/.420 with a .724 OPS; he had seven doubles, four home runs, 11 RBI, 15 runs scored, and 11 walks in 42 games. The Astros traded Hernandez to the Toronto Blue Jays at the trade deadline of the 2017 season, and he spent six years with Toronto slashing .263/.320/.503 with a .823 OPS; he had 125 doubles, ten triples, 129 home runs, 369 RBI, 337 runs scored, 35 stolen bases, and 176 walks. In November of 2022, the Blue Jays traded Hernandez to the Seattle Mariners, and with the Mariners in 2023, Hernandez slashed .258/.305/.435 with a .741 OPS; Hernandez had 29 doubles, two triples, 26 home runs, 93 RBI, 70 runs scored, seven stolen bases, and 38 walks. His career slash line is .261/.316/.486 with a .802 OPS; he has 161 doubles, 12 triples, 159 home runs, 473 RBI, 422 runs scored, 42 stolen bases, and 225 walks. In his career at Fenway Park, he has slashed .282/.340/.606 with a .946 OPS; he has nine doubles, two triples, 14 home runs, 44 RBI, and 16 walks in 45 games.
Bottom Line:
The rumors keep swirling about who the Red Sox may bring in as their right-handed back and what pitchers they will be going after. If true and the Red Sox are interested in these two bats, who would you prefer them to bring in and could help the lineup in the 2024 season?
Hernandez