Red Sox Sign Outfielder Away From Division Rival To Bolster Depth
After a slow start to the offseason, the Boston Red Sox have put their foot on the gas in order to place the finishing touches on the 2023 roster.
Fans were woken up Wednesday morning by the Red Sox's reported signing of outfielder Adam Duvall, and went to sleep as the team added another player at the same position.
Former Toronto Blue Jays free-agent outfielder Raimel Tapia posted an Instagram story of the Red Sox's logo with no caption late Wednesday night. He also reposted a story welcoming him to Boston.
Tapia hit .265 with 30 extra-base hits including seven home runs, 52 RBIs and a .672 OPS in 128 games last season.
Much of his production came at Fenway Park, where he seemed to temporarily transform into a star. Tapia hit .300 (9-for-30) with a double, triple, two home runs, 12 RBIs and a .900 OPS in his new home ballpark last season.
While the 28-year-old almost certainly will not elevate into an All-Star simply by playing half of his games at Fenway Park, he has been a solid player throughout his career -- highlighted by his .277/.318/.392 slash line, which adds up to a respectable .709 OPS in 567 games.
The drawback with Tapia is his basement-level defensive capabilities. The left-hander has a hose, ranking in the 83rd percentile for arm strength, but leaves much to be desired with the rest of his defensive game.
Tapia is in the 12th percentile in Outs Above Average and the 10th percentile for outfielder jump.
Tapia joins Duvall, Alex Verdugo, Masahiro Yoshida, Rob Refsnyder and possibly Kiké Hernández (depending on roster construction) to form a solid outfield. Jarren Duran also is available as a depth option and likely will battle Tapia for playing time in spring training.
After the injury-riddled campaign last season, Red Sox fans should be thrilled with any added depth to the organization.
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