Why Red Sox Roster Crunch May Spell Doom For 24-Year-Old Infielder

Will Boston let this once-promising youngster go?

Feb 18, 2019; Lee County, FL, USA; A general view of a Boston Red Sox helmet as Boston Red Sox center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. (19) walks on the field during a spring training workout at Jet Blue Park at Fenway South. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-Imagn Images | Jasen Vinlove-Imagn Images

The Boston Red Sox will be getting rid of a handful of players this offseason, but we don't yet know which ones.

At the end of the year, the Red Sox had a laundry list of players on the 60-day injured list, necessitating the additions of rookies Connelly Early and Payton Tolle to the 40-man roster. That means as of Thursday, between active players and injured ones, the Red Sox have 41 players who need spots heading into the official offseason.

Though more spots will be needed when the Red Sox start signing free agents and making trades, quick math would tell us someone needs to be designated for assignment or non-tendered by the Thursday deadline to activate those injured players.

Could Vaughn Grissom be DFA'd Thursday?

Mar 4, 2025; Bradenton, Florida, USA; Boston Red Sox second base Vaughn Grissom (5) singles during the fourth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at LECOM Park. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images | Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

On Thursday, Mac Cerullo of the Boston Herald identified second baseman Vaughn Grissom as a candidate to be dropped from the roster, which would likely end his time in the Boston organization.

"The Red Sox also have nine players currently on the 60-day IL: Triston Casas, Kutter Crawford, Hunter Dobbins, Vaughn Grissom, Luis Guerrero, Tanner Houck, Marcelo Mayer, Patrick Sandoval and Josh Winckowski," wrote Cerullo.

"Of the players who are currently active, the most likely candidate to be designated for assignment is left-hander Jovani Moran. ... The Red Sox could also DFA someone who is currently on the 60-day, with Winckowski and Grissom standing out as logical candidates."

As Cerullo states, Grissom finished the season injured after playing 96 games for Triple-A Worcester, where he slashed .270/.342/.441 with 13 home runs and 48 RBIs. Once a top prospect for the Atlanta Braves, Grissom was the lone return piece in the trade that sent 2024 Cy Young Award winner Chris Sale to the Atlanta Braves.

Having been surpassed by Kristian Campbell on the Red Sox's second-base depth chart before the season, there wasn't much Grissom could do this year to get back in Boston's good graces. He's a clear change-of-scenery candidate and even if he survives Thursday, the odds that he's traded or DFA'd by the start of spring training have to be above 95%.

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