Walker Buehler and Garrett Crochet were added by the Boston Red Sox this offseason in an effort to improve their starting lineup. Their actions probably suggest that veteran starter Nick Pivetta won’t be returning. Just Baseball’s Ryan Finkelstein anticipated that Pivetta will leave the Red Sox to join the Toronto Blue Jays on a two-year, $40 million deal with an opt-out. “The downside to Pivetta is the fact that he has not finished any of the last four seasons with an ERA under 4.00, and teams will have to forfeit draft capital to sign him,” Finkelstein stated. “The Toronto Blue Jays are one team that might be desperate enough to disregard the draft capital at this point in the offseason. The Jays
have struck out on most major free agents, with a lot of their pursued targets having been attached to the qualifying offer.” Pivetta has started 107 games for the Red Sox in the last five seasons. Signing with the Blue Jays would give him the opportunity to make the Red Sox pay for not bringing him back. The Blue Jays have not been able to convince stars to sign with them. They have, however, successfully added Andrés Giménez through trade. An offseason haul of Giménez and Pivetta is not what the Blue Jays had in mind, but it is not bad. Pivetta could serve as a solid arm in the backend of the Blue Jays rotation. He would be a great compliment to Kevin Gausman, José Berríos and Chris Bassitt. Pivetta has already made two starts against the Red Sox in his career. He has a 0.69 ERA and 15 strikeouts against them. He could continue to succeed against the Red Sox if he joined the Blue Jays. Additionally, Pivetta has a 3.74 ERA in seven starts at the Rogers Center in his career.
Chris Bassitt and José Berríos. In his career, Pivetta has already started twice against the Red Sox. Against them, he has a 0.69 ERA and 15 strikeouts. If he joined the Blue Jays, he could keep winning against the Red Sox. Furthermore, in his seven career starts at the Rogers Centre, Pivetta has a 3.74 ERA.