Tuesday marks an important day on the baseball calendar: Players extended qualifying offers must accept or reject their deals and teams must protect Rule 5 Draft eligible players by adding them to their 40-man rosters.
Of their eligible free agents, the Red Sox extended a qualifying offer — a one-year, $21.05 million deal — only to right-hander Nick Pivetta. The deadline for players to decide is 4 p.m. ET and Pivetta, whose market this winter appears to be robust, is expected to decline.
If he declines and signs elsewhere, the Red Sox will gain an additional draft pick following the compensation round B (after the second round) in the 2025 MLB Draft. That very well might have been part of their strategy in making him the offer, knowing he would decline and they would pick up the additional draft pick.
It would also help offset some of the discomfort in signing another free agent who’d declined a qualifying offer. Top free agent pitchers Max Fried, Corbin Burnes, Sean Manaea and hitters Juan Soto, Teoscar Hernández, Pete Alonso and Willy Adames are expected to decline their QOs. In signing one of those players, the Red Sox would forfeit their second-highest draft pick in 2025 plus $500,000 in international draft money.
As for the Rule 5 protections, there are a few players the Red Sox might add to their roster. First, however, the Red Sox will need to clear room. The Red Sox 40-man roster currently sits at 40 after the Justin Wilson signing on Thursday. Among players that could potentially be designated for assignment to make room for Rule 5 additions are Bryan Mata, Isaiah Campbell, Bailey Horn and Mickey Gasper.
Last winter, the Red Sox added two pitchers, Wikelman González and Luis Perales, to the 40-man roster to protect them from the Rule 5 draft. González had an up-and-down year at Double A and Perales missed most of the year due to Tommy John surgery.
This year, the Red Sox have a few decisions to make, which will dictate how many spots they need to clear on the roster.
As a reminder, if a team selects a player in the Rule 5 Draft, which takes place Dec. 12 in Dallas, the player needs to remain on the major-league active roster all season or be returned to his original team for $50,000. The Red Sox traded for reliever Justin Slaten last winter, shortly after he’d been acquired in the Rule 5 draft by the Mets. Slaten, of course, stuck on the roster all season and became a valuable piece of the bullpen.
Players who are deemed too young or not ready for a full season in the majors are often left unprotected because it’s unlikely they’d be selected in the draft and stick on a big-league roster all year.
Here are a few Red Sox farm hands who appear most likely to be added to the 40-man roster:
Hunter Dobbins, RHP
Dobbins was named Red Sox Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2024 after posting a 3.08 ERA, 22.9 percent strikeout rate and 9.1 percent walk rate in 25 starts between Double-A Portland and Triple-A Worcester. The 25-year-old was drafted by the Red Sox in the eighth round in 2021 and represents a depth starter option for the club.
Michael Fulmer, RHP
Fulmer is a unique case having already pitched in the majors. The 31-year-old right-hander signed with the Red Sox last spring on a rare two-year, minor-league deal as he spent 2024 recovering from elbow surgery. WEEI.com recently reported Fulmer has been in Fort Myers, Fla., throwing and is expected to be ready for spring training. He would be owed $1.5 million if added to the major-league roster. In 2016, Fulmer won American League Rookie of the Year as a starter with Detroit but he’s mostly pitched out of the bullpen of late. In 2021-22, Fulmer posted a 3.17 ERA and 23.4 percent strikeout rate between Detroit and Minnesota. In 2023 with the Cubs, his strikeout rate increased to a career-high 27.4 percent while he posted a 4.42 ERA in 58 appearances.
Jhostynxon Garcia, OF
Garcia jumped three levels last season and had such a monster year at the plate the Red Sox may opt to protect him even though he’s only played 30 games at Double A. The 21-year-old outfielder hit .286 with an .892 OPS and 23 homers in 107 games across Low-A Salem, High-A Greenville and Double-A Portland and ranks among the top 20 prospects in the system.
(Photo of Dobbins: Shawn Patrick Ouellette / Portland Press Herald via Getty Images)
