"Let's start here: this is a good move in a vacuum. Gray's 5.89 strikeout-to-walk ratio was the fourth-best in all of baseball last year, trailing only Tarik Skubal, Garrett Crochet, and Bryan Woo. His 3.6 fWAR last year would have easily been the second-best mark on the Red Sox staff. He's a good pitcher who makes the Red Sox better and the Sox paid a perfectly reasonable price to get him."
"Richard Fitts had an ERA+ of just 83 last year, is not particularly young as he's entering his age-26 season, and was buried on the Sox depth chart. If, as a team, you can't risk trading away Richard Fitts, then you've got major problems; the worst part of losing him is that we'll never find out whether his parents are totally clueless or the funniest goddamn people in the world."
"Clarke is a slightly different story, as he's a left-handed prospect who throws heat and was tabbed by some to have a breakout performance next year. But even still, he's completed only one season of single-A ball and is just as likely to end up as a reliever as he is a starter - if he ever makes it to the big leagues at all."
The Red Sox acquired Sonny Gray from the Cardinals in exchange for Richard Fitts, prospect Brandon Clarke, and a player to be named later or cash. Gray turned 36 two weeks ago and is owed $35 million plus a $5 million buyout for the final contract year, with the Cardinals covering $20 million and the Red Sox responsible for $20 million toward the competitive-balance tax. Gray posted a 5.89 strikeout-to-walk ratio (fourth-best in MLB) and 3.6 fWAR last year, which would rank near the top of the Red Sox staff. Fitts had an ERA+ of 83 and was blocked on the depth chart. Clarke is a hard-throwing lefty with one single-A season, projection uncertainty, and a realistic chance of converting to relief rather than becoming a frontline starter.
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