Hours before Tuesday’s 6 p.m. deadline to finalize their 40-man roster for next month’s Rule 5 Draft, the Red Sox swung a trade with a division rival and designated first baseman Nathaniel Lowe and right-hander Josh Winckowski for assignment.
Right-handed reliever Luis Guerrero is going to the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for infielder Tristan Gray.
Guerrero, however, was no longer on the 40-man roster after being designated for assignment, clearing waivers, and being outrighted to the minors earlier this month. Thus, the Red Sox opened a roster spot for Gray by DFA’ing Lowe. Winckowski’s spot will be given to a top prospect they wish to protect from the Rule 5, likely right-hander David Sandlin.
Gray, 29, is coming off his second stint with the Rays, with whom he made his big-league debut in 2023, but only has 47 career games under his belt. He split the ‘24 season between the Markins and Athletics. Over a career-high 30 games for the Rays this year he batted .231 with a .693 OPS. He is a lifetime .207, .634 OPS hitter, but has played all four infield positions in the majors and can provide defensive depth. It also could mean less work for utility infielders David Hamilton and Nick Sogard.
Guerrero, 25, debuted for the ‘24 Sox and made nine scoreless appearances to begin his MLB career. He continued his scoreless streak through his first three games this year, but struggled with command and consistency in his final 10 outings and did not pitch for the big-league team after June 27.
Winckowski, 27, has been with the Red Sox since the 2020-21 offseason, when they acquired him as a prospect in the three-team Andrew Benintendi trade with the Kansas City Royals and New York Mets, and debuted with Boston in ‘22. He owns a 4.20 ERA over 121 career games these last four seasons, including a strong ‘23 campaign in which he made 60 appearances and posted a career-best 2.88 ERA. He only made six big-league appearances this year, and spent the bulk of the season on the 60-day injured list with a right flexor strain.
The Red Sox acquired Lowe from the Washington Nationals at this summer’s trade deadline. He is projected to receive approximately $13.5 million in arbitration this year, an unnecessary cost for the Red Sox if fellow first baseman Triston Casas can contribute.
— Gabrielle Starr, Boston HeraldÂ
Mets: Pitcher Montas cut loose
The Mets parted ways with Frankie Montas on Tuesday afternoon, designating the right-hander for assignment after a disappointing season.
The club is still on the hook for $17 million since Montas exercised his player option for 2026. Montas is currently rehabbing from September Tommy John surgery, so without him being available to play next season, the Mets decided to use his roster spot. Waivers were requested for his unconditional release.
Outfielder Nick Morabito was added to the 40-man roster. A speedy 22-year-old outfielder, Morabito could make it to the Major Leagues as soon as next season. This effectively protects Morabito from being exposed in the Rule 5 Draft next month.
There’s no sugarcoating the fact that this was a bad signing. At the time it was made last winter, it seemed like a low-risk deal even if two years and $34 million was an overpay for the veteran starter. Montas figured something out in the second half of 2024 with the Milwaukee Brewers, a club that current Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns is obviously very familiar with, and the right-hander has long been considered a fantastic clubhouse presence.
But he was injured early in camp with a lat strain, which sidelined him until late June. He struggled almost immediately and was demoted to the bullpen after only seven starts, only making it into the sixth inning in two of them.
The 32-year-old pitched in only nine games, going 3-2 with a 6.28 ERA before going down with the elbow injury in late August.
While the veteran wasn’t happy with the demotion, he took the assignment in stride. The Mets ultimately made the decision to call up right-hander Nolan McLean to take his rotation spot, and McLean was fantastic the rest of the way.
The Montas signing was the kind of signing that worked for Stearns and the Mets in 2024. He was a reclamation project of sorts, who saw good results when he started throwing his split-finger fastball in 2024. The Mets thought they could capitalize on this pitch by having him increase the usage even more, giving him a swing-and-miss pitch to offset his arsenal of ground-ball pitches.
— Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News