Why Craig Breslow believes prospect Red Sox acquired from Royals can be a ‘legitimate starting pitcher’
Breslow said the Red Sox "identified [Sandlin] early on as someone that we think is on the rise."
While the Red Sox likely made a move that will dampen their bullpen in 2024 on Saturday, Craig Breslow likes the future upside of who they got from the Royals in John Schreiber.
Minor league pitcher David Sandlin, who the Red Sox acquired for Schreiber, was on the team’s radar, according to Breslow. Red Sox manager manager Alex Cora told reporters Saturday that the Royals were “pushing hard” to get Schreiber, giving the Red Sox the opportunity to acquire Sandlin.
“We had identified [Sandlin] early on as someone that we think is on the rise, has the makings of a legitimate starting pitcher,” Craig Breslow told reporters Saturday. “Loved the stuff, loved the makeup, and we’ve seen the stuff take a pretty significant step forward.”
Sandlin, 23, has only pitched at the Single-A level so far, but he pitched well in his first full season in the minors. The righty went 4-1 with a 3.38 ERA, 79 strikeouts, 13 walks, and 57 hits in 58 2/3 innings over 12 starts last year with Single-A Columbia. He made two more starts with High-A Quad City later in the year, going 0-1 with a 4.50 ERA.
As Sandlin posted some solid numbers in A-ball, Breslow likes the makeup and potential of the Red Sox’ newest prospect, who the Royals selected in the 11th round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of Oklahoma.
“Fastball as an amateur was kind of low 90s. In pro ball, it’s been up to 98-99 [mph],” Breslow said. “Pitches probably at 95-97, good breaking ball, and a [change-up] that we see room to optimize. And so it was a combination of raw stuff, projection, and a chance to tweak the usage just a little bit and improve performance.”
Sandlin has been viewed as a riser in the prospect ranks as he enters his second full season in the minors. Baseball America recently named him as one of the three potential breakout candidates in the Royals’ farm system while The Athletic‘s Keith Law ranked Sandlin as the seventh-best prospect in the team’s system earlier in February.
The cost to acquire Sandlin wasn’t insignificant, though. Schreiber has been one of their most frequently used arms out of the bullpen over the last two seasons, making 110 total appearances since the start of the 2022 season. He was also effective in his role as one of the Red Sox’ setup men, particularly in 2022 when he had a 2.22 ERA in 65 innings pitched over 64 appearances.
Breslow admitted it was tough to move off Schreiber, but he also likes what the Red Sox have in terms of right-handed arms out of the bullpen moving forward.
“Any time you make these trades, you have to recognize that we’re trading a really talented pitcher in Schreiber over there, and that was difficult,” Breslow said. “It wasn’t an easy decision, but like I said, I feel like my job is to do what is best for the organization, and I think this was a chance to do that.
“I think we talked for a while about our right-handed relief depth,” Breslow added. “That’s something that we feel strongly about, something we feel confident in, and the need, when the opportunity exists, to create more starting pitching depth … I think this was one example of a chance to do that.”
Even though the Red Sox traded Schreiber on Saturday, there have been rumors of them possibly trading their two top relievers in recent weeks. They’ve reportedly taken calls on Kenley Jansen and Chris Martin as a possible means to shed salary.
Beyond Jansen and Martin, the other possible right-handed pitchers who could have top roles out of the bullpen will likely come down to what they do with their starting rotation. Tanner Houck, Garrett Whitlock, and Josh Winckowski are among the three right-handed pitchers battling for a spot in the starting rotation who also have experience working out of the bullpen.
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