Guess what? Chaim Bloom did it again. Pablo Reyes, an obscure player almost nobody had heard of before his trade to the Red Sox, has become a pivotal role player out of nowhere.
Reyes has not only provided stability defensively but also has surprised offensively.
And after missing a month due to injury, the middle infielder has picked up right where he left off with the bat, if not been even better.
(He’s undoubtedly been one of the few Red Sox batters who’ve been hitting the last week or two.)
Pablo Reyes has played himself into serious contention for a roster spot on the 2024 Red Sox.
Sometimes, “dumpster diving” pays big dividends.
Pablo Reyes Became Red Sox’s Best Infielder After Trade
Embed from Getty ImagesAt the time of Reyes’ trade to the Red Sox, the middle infield was in shambles. The backups to the backups were injured or not getting the job done — or players were plain out of position.
Enrique Hernández (-12 Fielding Run Value/-6 Defensive Runs Saved at shortstop) sucked. Yu Chang (+3 FRV/+1 DRS at short) was the stabilizer for a hot second until he got injured in late April. And then Christian Arroyo (-2 FRV/+2 DRS at second base) got hurt.
Enmanuel Valdéz hit for a while but fell off too much to deal with his defense (-3 FRV/-6 DRS at second).
Bobby Dalbec is barely a corner infielder, let alone a middle infielder (thankfully, he barely played).
The Red Sox desperately needed another stabilizer. In came the unknown Pablo Reyes.
Reyes immediately made an impact defensively (-1 FRV/-1 DRS at second/+1 DRS at short), surprising most when he started hitting, too.
Not long after the trade, it was apparent that, between Kiké’s and Valdéz’s struggles, he should have been the Red Sox’s everyday shortstop.
But Alex Cora didn’t do that. Cora kept playing Kiké at short even after Arroyo returned in early June.
The 24-year-old Reyes started in 18 of his first 27 games with the Sox, 11 at short. Then he got hurt and didn’t return until July 29.
Boston returned to not having much choice for shortstop until Chang returned in early July.
Pablo, a native of the Dominican Republic, has started in 13 of his last 15 games since returning from injury and has been on a tear offensively, and somehow surviving Boston’s eventual infield logjam.
Trevor Story (+1 FRV/+2 DRS already) hasn’t played daily yet as he eases back into things. And trade deadline acquisition Luis Urías has played less than Bloom insinuated.
The everyday opportunity arrived for Reyes a few months late. But better late than never, I guess.
His Surprising Offense Has Helped, Too
Embed from Getty ImagesDefense is what the Red Sox were after when they traded with the Oakland Athletics for Pablo Reyes. Whatever he was going to be at the plate, who cared?
But he has surprised everybody, becoming one of the bright spots among an inconsistent Red Sox offense.
Reyes hit .303/.338/.364/.702 with four doubles, 9 RBI, four walks, ten strikeouts, and an 89 wRC+ before his injury.
He’s taken it to another level since, hitting .341/.383/.546/.929 with three doubles, two home runs, 6 RBI, three walks, four strikeouts, and a 151 wRC+.
Aside from a few others, the lineup around him has disappeared since San Fransisco.
Boston has scored four or more runs in eight of their last 19 games (8-11 record). They rank 22nd in runs scored (69), 26th in walk rate (6.5 percent), and 15th in strikeout rate (22 percent). They are hitting .236/.288/.401/.689 with an 81 wRC+.
The biggest culprits have been Rafael Devers, Masataka Yoshida, Jarren Duran, Adam Duvall, and Connor Wong.
Everybody else has been okay.
Pablo Reyes stepped up — something we can say about some of the depth we’ve seen this season — after his trade to the Red Sox. He has provided much-needed stability for the infield and surprising offense that’s helped the Red Sox stay above .500 and in the American League Wild Card hunt.
Chaim Bloom went “dumpster diving” to get Pablo Reyes in a Red Sox uniform, and it’s paid off (again). Deal with it.
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Featured Image Credit: Maddie Malhotra/Getty Images/Boston Red Sox
