Red Sox World Series Champion Available; Should Club Consider Reunion To Bolster Depth?

Opening Day may be March 30, but teams are still making moves left and right.

With Opening Day practically here, MLB clubs must finalize their 26-man active rosters ahead of their openers. With roster crunches ongoing, this also is leading to plenty of players being released and becoming free agents.

One player who now is available as a free agent is former Boston Red Sox catcher Sandy Leon. The 34-year-old signed a minor league contract with the Texas Rangers this offseason and after being notified he would not make the big league club, opted out of his deal and was released by the team, according to the club.

The Texas Rangers today announced that the club has released C Sandy León from his minor league contract.
— Texas Rangers PR (@TXRangersPR) March 27, 2023

Leon is an 11-year MLB veteran and spent the 2022 campaign with the Cleveland Guardians and Minnesota Twins. He struggled last season and slashed .169/.298/.211 to go along with four RBIs and three doubles in 33 games.

The 34-year-old made his MLB debut in 2012 with the Washington Nationals and spent the first three years of his career with the club before joining the Red Sox ahead of the 2015 season. Leon spent five seasons in Boston and was a member of the historic 2018 World Series champion Red Sox.

Offensively Leon always has been inconsistent, but has been known throughout his career as an extremely solid defensive catcher. He may have struggled in 2022, but Leon may be worth a minor league contract if Boston still is looking to add depth ahead of the 2023 campaign.

Boston is expected to have Reese McGuire and Connor Wong on the big league club and Jorge Alfaro with the Triple-A Worcester Red Sox to begin the season. Aside from those three, Boston doesn't have much MLB experience at the catcher position. Leon could provide the club even more depth just in case injuries pop up. Wong already has dealt with a hamstring injury in the spring, so it wouldn't hurt to add even more depth.

Leon became a fan favorite during his time in Boston so a reunion certainly wouldn't hurt. He wouldn't cost much and mainly would remain in the minor leagues. A move certainly couldn't hurt for Boston.

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