"John Henry dumpster diving" - Red Sox fans unenthused as club acquires Naoyuki Uwasawa from Rays for cash considerations
On Wednesday, it was announced that the Boston Red Sox acquired right-handed pitcher Naoyuki Uwasawa in a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays. Uwasawa was not going to make the club, making Boston an interested party, per MLB insider Jeff Passan.
Uwasawa spent nine years playing for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters from 2014 to 2023. Last season, he compiled a 9-9 record with a 2.96 ERA on 170 innings of work.
Boston was coming into the new season, still searching for arms. While Uwasawa is not a flamethrower, he is regarded as a crafty finesse pitcher who can miss barrels at a high rate.
However, the acquisition feels lackluster to Red Sox fans. They are tired of their owner, John Henry, who does not seem committed to making this team as good as they should be.
"John Henry dumpster diving," one fan posted.
"Battle for 4th place back on," another fan posted.
This will not move the needle during an offseason where guys like Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto signed. Boston fans were hoping for so much more over the offseason.
It could be a rough year for the Boston Red Sox
Playing in a division as tough as the American League East, you need to come into the offseason with a plan. Unfortunately for Red Sox fans, they had to watch other teams in the division make strong moves.
The New York Yankees certainly got better over the winter. They traded for All-Star slugger Juan Soto, who is coming off a career year. They also signed Marcus Stroman to pair behind Gerrit Cole at the top of the rotation.
The Baltimore Orioles are also another team that added to their strong roster this offseason. They traded for frontline starter Corbin Burnes, and he could be the player that takes them over the hump this season.
For Boston, one of their biggest acquisitions came from signing Lucas Giolito. Unfortunately, he will not pitch during the 2024 season as he partially tore his ulnar collateral ligament.
Stacking up against the other top teams in the division will be tough for this Boston lineup. It could be another year of disappointment for the fanbase after failing to make the postseason over the last two years.
Fans desperately wait for the team to return to form and be a consistent World Series contender again.