Cheap, young bullpen depth with a familiarity of the American League East. That's the Red Sox' aim in signing right-handed reliever Matt Albers, as first reported by NESN's Peter Gammons.
Albers' numbers won't jump off the page, but he is another option in the continued effort to support Daniel Bard and Jonathan Papelbon. 50 of Albers' 62 games in 2010 involved him getting outs in the seventh and eighth innings and nearly half of those appearances (30) came against the AL East.
Additionally, based on his ability to face both righties and lefties (both have hit .281 against Albers in his career), the 26-year-old, who figures to make about $1 million in 2011, threw 75 2/3 innings of relief last year, third among all American League relievers.
To put that work into perspective, Bard, the workhorse of the battered Boston bullpen last season, threw one fewer inning than Albers.
Last spring, the Red Sox brought in a boatload of 30- and 40-somethings to audition for the few remaining bullpen spots. With the addition of Albers, and potentially the non-tendered arms Taylor Buchholz and Andrew Miller, the trend this offseason is for youth.
And in Albers, they have a candidate who won't shrink on the Yankee Stadium mound in September. He's been there before.
