You want to give Dave Dombrowski, Mike Hazen and the rest of the Boston Red Sox front office a congratulatory handshake? Well, go ahead. They kind of deserve one right now.
And that is because of the move they made Thursday evening, sending infielder Aaron Hill from Milwaukee to Boston in exchange for PawSox ace Aaron Wilkerson and Sea Dogs second baseman Wendell Rijo.
Oh no! The future of the team is ruined! Well, reader, no. Not at all. Just think about it…
Keep thinking…..
And thinking….
Well, for starters, the Red Sox were really hurting for infield depth. Hell, they’re hurting for outfield depth, starting pitching depth and relief pitching depth right now. Depth is an issue for this Red Sox team. And this is one way to solve it. John Farrell was talking earlier in the week about how the Sox would like a right-handed batting infielder to platoon with Travis Shaw. Let’s be more specific, a right-handed infielder not named Brock Holt, Xander Bogaerts, Dustin Pedroia or the injured Josh Rutledge. So yeah, Aaron Hill.
John Farrell was talking earlier in the week about how the Sox would like a right-handed batting infielder to platoon with Travis Shaw. Let’s be more specific, a right-handed infielder not named Brock Holt, Xander Bogaerts, Dustin Pedroia or the injured Josh Rutledge. Hill is versatile. He plays three infield spots. He’s a right-handed bat. But he’s pretty much platoon neutral — which means he is a lot better than Shaw against left-handed pitching. And he’s probably better on the road than Shaw because who isn’t?
So just how is Hill doing this season. He’s hitting .283 with eight homers and a .780 OPS in 78 games. And he plays clean defense. Specifically, he plays a clean third base which, no offense, Holt really can’t do.
Wait a second! But what about the guys the Red Sox traded!? Well, Wilkerson is 27 and hasn’t thrown a pitch in the majors yet. He has an incredible story (yeah, I wrote that too) and the character and talent to succeed in the big leagues. But when the Red Sox called up Sean O’Sullivan last Sunday instead of him, it kind of showed how they viewed him — not as good of an option as O’Sullivan.
Would it have been better if the Sox dealt Henry Owens? Absolutely. But why would anyone want a guy who throws 88 and can’t throw strikes?
Rijo is young. And he could make something of himself. But y’all, this is the Aaron Hill who crushed 36 ding dongs for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2009. And as a right-handed bat, he looks like the kind of dude who could do a lot of damage at Fenway.
Ya… I think Aaron Hill's power fits right in at Fenway @pgammo pic.twitter.com/3LLZKSfJTu
— Daren Willman (@darenw) July 7, 2016
Get ready… It’s about to get lit. Fenway Park is gonna be Aaron’s Party. Come get it.
Jeremy Hellickson, you’re next.