The Boston Red Sox wanted Colten Brewer’s services long before they acquired them.
Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski revealed Tuesday night at Major League Baseball’s winter meetings the team tried to trade for the relief pitcher during the 2018 season but were unable to agree to a deal with the San Diego Padres. Boston had to wait until Nov. 20 to trade for Brewer, whom they landed in exchange for minor league infielder Esteban Quiroz.
“He was a guy we actually tried to trade for in the middle of the summer before the trading deadline and we were not able to do it,” Dombrowski said, per MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith.
Brewer has pitched just 9 2/3 innings in the major leagues, but Dombrowski believes he has the talent to bolster the Red Sox’s bullpen next season.
“We like his arm,” Dombrowski said. “He’s got good stuff. He’s got a plus-fastball, plus-breaking ball. He pitched well at the minor league level. We have scouting and analytics that both like him. We think he’s a guy that has a legitimate chance to pitch for us. So we like a lot of things about him.”
Brewer, 26, made his MLB debut in 2018 after six-plus seasons in the minor leagues. Like Dombrowski and Red Sox fans, Brewer probably hopes the old adage saying “good things coming to those who wait” actually is true.
