After the Boston Red Sox severed ties with Eric Hosmer, chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom explained the thought process behind the decision on Friday.
As the Red Sox made their latest offseason move and acquired Wyatt Mills from the Kansas City Royals, the club needed roster space. That's where Hosmer came in. Boston designated the veteran for assignment after playing just 14 games for the Red Sox last season.
Bloom, who is in the process of reshaping the roster after missing the playoffs in 2022, spoke about the move afterward and noted that the development of prospect Triston Casas played a factor in the decision to move on from Hosmer ahead of the 2023 season.
"Our roster isn't complete yet, but as we build our club, we feel it's important to give Triston a clear lane, and that carrying two left-handed hitting first basemen would leave us short in other areas," Bloom said, as transcribed by Chris Cotillo of MassLive. "Given that, it's important to do right by Eric and give him time to find his next opportunity. We knew when we first got him that this day would come at some point, and wanted to make sure we treated him right."
Considering Casas is only 22 and Hosmer is in the midst of earning $39 million from the San Diego Padres for the next three years, the move didn't come as much of a surprise.
While Casas hasn't shown a large enough sample size to judge, he did show some pop in his bat. Casas crushed five home runs in 76 at-bats through 27 games played as he debuted with the Red Sox last season.
Meanwhile, Hosmer struggled to stay healthy and battled a back injury. The former World Series champ batted .244/.320/.311 and totaled 11 hits (no homers) with three doubles and four RBIs in Boston.
With the Padres still responsible for Hosmer's salary until 2026, the 33-year-old will seek his next club.
