MLB Notebook: Should the Sox make a bid for Stanton?

Ten Thoughts about the Red Sox, Major League Baseball and related items...

1) Rumors of a trade involving Giancarlo Stanton were everywhere this past week, and by virtue of their market size and payroll, the Red Sox were, of course, listed as a possible landing spot for the slugger.

That much makes sense. The Red Sox have the resources to absorb such a salary, and they have their own TV network which would undoubtedly welcome an attraction like Stanton.

Assuming that the Miami Marlins – or, more specifically, the franchise’s incoming ownership group - are serious about moving Stanton, the Sox could take two paths toward acquiring him:

They could absorb the remaining $295 million owed him over the next 10 seasons and give the Marlins little in return. Simply absorbing that kind of financial commitment would exempt the Sox from emptying their farm system. The Marlins would have to be happy with getting the money off the books.

Or, they could agree to take a sizeable portion of the remaining money, but supplement that with a number of low service-time players (think: Andrew Benintendi and Rafael Devers).

Neither strategy is sound. History shows that it’s seldom wise to take on such a long, expensive deal. Power doesn’t age well, and the Sox could be stuck with a declining player a massive contract as Stanton, who will be 29 before next Opening Day -- gets into his mid-30’s. Already, he’s proven to be less than durable, having played more than 145 games just once in his first six full seasons.

If it requires the Sox to give up the likes of Benintendi and Devers in exchange for a subsidized contract, that, too, offers risks. Do the Sox want to give up talented, young player whom they control through their early-to-mid 20’s in exchange for someone who, while a dominant hitter, is the most expensive player in the game’s history? Wouldn’t that kind of money be better invested in pitching? After all, the Sox have shown that they can churn out position players. Meanwhile, Jon Lester is the last consistently good starter the team has drafted and developed

2) Wonder if the Yankees are secretly regretting the deal they handed out to Aroldis Chapman?

The Yanks traded Chapman to the Cubs at the deadline last July, obtained a package of four players – led by prospect Gleyber Torres – in exchange, then re-signed Chapman themselves after the season.

Win-win, right? Rent him out for some prospects to re-stock the system, then wield the Yankees’ magic checkbook and lure him back.

But it’s only year one of his five-year, $86 million deal and already Chapman is giving the Yanks buyer’s remorse. Manager Joe Girardi removed him from the closer’s role Saturday after another poor outing against the Sox, his third in the last month. For the season, Chapman is 4-2 with a 4.29 ERA. He already has four blown saves and is averaging 4.3 walks per nine innings. Even his typically outrageous strikeout rates are down from his career average.

Chapman would seem to have one skill – the ability to throw his fastball in triple digits. But he can’t always command it and he doesn’t seem to have much in the way of a second pitch.

Perhaps the outsized role elite relievers – Chapman among them – played in last fall’s post-season made teams forget about the traditional wariness teams have had in signing closers to pricy, long-term deals. The feeling in the game had been that closers are too voluble and easy to replace with cheaper options to warrant that sort of commitment. Maybe that instinct was correct.

In the meantime, the Yankees are on the hook for $15 million salaries through 2021 for a pitcher who may now be the third-best closer option (beyond Dellin Betances and David Robertson) in the New York bullpen.

3) Not long ago, the final series of the season at Fenway looked insignificant. Not anymore.

Major League Baseball likes to have teams play within their division in the final weeks to enhance competition and make playoff races more exciting. But with an odd-number of teams in each division, that’s not always feasible.

So, the Sox will host the Houston Astros for the final four games of the season.

When the Astros were running away with the best record in the American League earlier in the year, it looked like they’d have little invested in the series as they got ready for the Division Series. But entering Saturday, the Red Sox were just four games behind the Astros in the loss column for the best record in the American League.

There are six weeks to go before the first weekend in October and a lot can change. But maybe that series won’t be meaningless at all. Instead, it could go right down to the final day of the season to determine the top seed in the A.L. and home field in the ALCS should the two teams get past their first-round matchups.

4) Don’t look for the Red Sox to add too many players once rosters expand Sept. 1. It’s logical to expect that they’ll add a third catcher (Blake Swihart), another first base option (Sam Travis), an infielder or two (Deven Marrero, Tzu-Wei Lin) and a bullpen arm (Austin Maddux? Kyle Martin?).

Bryce Brentz, who’s having a great season and could fill in at both corner outfield spots while providing some right-handed power, could be a possibility but he’s not currently on the 40-man roster. The Sox would have to clear space to get him on and make him eligible for a call-up.

5) And on the topic of expanded rosters: once again, MLB has done nothing to address an issue that affects the integrity of final month competition.

In what other sport is it permissible to play with as many as 10 more eligible players than the opponent? Yet, this remains in place in baseball, with some teams calling up a handful of players in September and others as many as 15.

In what other sport do the rules regarding how many players are eligible each game drastically change in the final 20 percent of the schedule?

There are a number of potential solutions available – anywhere from a floating taxi squad, with only 25 players eligible to a more standardized minimum/maximum size roster in place for September

But doing nothing and allowing this affront to equitable competition is unacceptable.

6) This week’s four-game series with the Indians in Cleveland for the Red Sox could well serve as a preview of an ALDS rematch in October. The Red Sox were overmatched a year ago when the Indians got on a post-season roll and went all the way to extra innings of Game 7 in the World Series before losing to the Cubs.

This year?

“This is a more athletic Red Sox team,’’ said a major league talent evaluator. “They don’t have (David) Ortiz this year, obviously, but they’re more well-rounded. And (Rafael) Devers has made a big difference. But the biggest thing is (Chris) Sale. He matched up with (Corey) Kluber. I’d say (the series) is a toss-up.’’

7) Six weeks out from the start of the post-season, there are plenty of potentially intriguing matchups in the post-season. But as things stand, the NLDS between the Cubs and Nationals could be fascinating. And the winner of that series against the Dodgers for an NLCS could be truly epic.

8) In the American League, a competitive wild card chase is under way, with a half-dozen teams within two games of the second post. But while the drama and close races helps maintain fan interest in more cities – one of the goals, stated or not, of adding the wild card in the first place – are any of the teams, you know, good? “No,’’ said a scout who has watched the American League this season. “Every single one of them is flawed. And some are barely average.’’

9) I spent 15 minutes talking by phone with Pedro Martinez for the story we ran on Boston Sports Journal about Chris Sale. Wish it could have been an hour or so. In 29 years of covering the Red Sox, Martinez is easily – easily – the most intelligent, entertaining and insightful player I’ve covered.

10) Wonder if the intervening weeks have calmed things down between the Red Sox and Orioles? We’ll know more next weekend when Baltimore comes to town for a weekend series at Fenway.