The Boston Red Sox bolstered their outfield depth Monday by signing Hunter Renfroe to a one-year contract.
And more help could be on the way.
Renfroe, who spent 2020 with the Tampa Bay Rays after four seasons with the San Diego Padres, joins an outfield that already features Alex Verdugo and Andrew Benintendi, but Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom didn’t rule out additional acquisitions.
“I think we still have room to add,” Bloom said of Boston’s outfield during a video conference Monday. “I always talk about depth and it’s so important. But I do think we still have room to add without straining our roster.
“The good thing is here we have a number of outfielders who are all good enough athletes to play center field, but we also still have room to augment that with a center fielder or with a corner outfielder. So we now have options and different paths we can take, but it’d be nice to continue to increase our depth as we go forward.”
Renfroe brings intriguing upside, largely thanks to his light-tower power and above-average defense at either corner outfield spot. The Red Sox could do worse than start the season with Verdugo in center field, sandwiched by Benintendi and Renfroe in left field and right field, respectively.
That said, Renfroe ultimately might fill a platoon role with Boston, as he’s been far more successful against left-handed pitching than right-handed pitching in his major league career.
And while Verdugo, Benintendi and Renfroe all might be capable of handling center field, the Red Sox probably would be best served adding someone with more experience in that particular area of the outfield.
This could be as simple as re-signing free agent Jackie Bradley Jr., whom Red Sox general manager Brian O’Halloran said last week remains on Boston’s radar. Or the organization could consider other, potentially cheaper alternatives while continuing to deepen the roster.
