Why Pablo Sandoval and the Boston Red Sox Would Be Match Made in Heaven

The Boston Red Sox need Pablo Sandoval more than Sandoval needs the Red Sox. But that doesn't mean such a pairing wouldn't be a great match for both sides.

The not-quite-former San Francisco Giants third baseman certainly could re-sign with the club with which he's won three titles in the past five seasons. That's a distinct possibility, as Buster Olney of ESPN (subscription required) writes.

But Sandoval, a free agent, could just as easily decide he has accomplished all he can in San Francisco and wants a new challenge—and perhaps a little more money—elsewhere.

After all, Gordon Edes of ESPN Boston is reporting that the Red Sox are "all in" on going after Sandoval, even though the club arguably has a larger need for quality pitching.

"We've met with several [agents], including [Sandoval's representative, Gustavo Vasquez], and had good constructive conversations with a lot of guys already," Boston general manager Ben Cherington said, per Edes. "All those conversations will continue. I don't expect anything to happen this week, or maybe in the near term. This may play out. I expect many [conversations] to continue over the next few weeks."

Maybe it's a long shot still, but don't be shocked if Sandoval-to-the-Sox does, in fact, play out.

For one thing, Sandoval is 28 years old, which is on the young side for a free agent, many of whom from this year's class have hit the big three-oh by now. That's an appealing aspect for the Red Sox, who have avoided giving big-money, multi-year deals to free agents north of 30 years old in recent years.

Michael Dwyer/Associated Press/Associated Press

Also appealing? Sandoval mans the hot corner, which has been a black hole in Boston since Kevin Youkilis' career fell off a cliff in 2012. And that position is the only one at which the Red Sox lack an answer.

Sure, Will Middlebrooks had that fine half-season after replacing Youkilis in '12, but his power isn't enough to offset his overly aggressive approach and injury issues. Or the fact that the 26-year-old has triple-slashed just .213/.265/.364 across 2013 and 2014.

"We want to believe in Will because the skill-set is there," manager John Farrell said in September to Jonny Miller of WBZ Radio, per Adam Kaufman of Boston.com. "But I think, where we are as a team, we have to see if there are any upgrades that make sense for us."

Sandoval would be just such an upgrade.

In turn, addressing third base ensures that former top prospect Xander Bogaerts, who had an up-and-down rookie year, will enter his second season as the full-time starting shortstop.

That's a good thing for both Bogaerts' development and the Red Sox, as the 22-year-old batted a respectable .266/.333/.391 at short but a ghastly .182/.217/.300 when he played third.

Brian Blanco/Getty Images

Sandoval also would provide Boston with a switch-hitter and, especially, a lefty hitter, which is an area the Red Sox must fill. Other than slugging designated hitter David Ortiz, no other projected regular hits from the left side.

PLAYER	POSITION	BATS
C	Christian Vazquez	Right-handed
1B	Mike Napoli	Right-handed
2B	Dustin Pedroia	Right-handed
3B	Pablo Sandoval	Switch
SS	Xander Bogaerts	Right-handed
LF	Yoenis Cespedes	Right-handed
CF	Rusney Castillo	Right-handed
RF	Shane Victorino	Right-handed
DH	David Ortiz	Left-handed

Even excess outfielders Allen Craig and Mookie Betts are righties, which leaves only switch-hitting Daniel Nava and lefty-swingers Brock Holt and Jackie Bradley Jr.

That explains why Boston posted a .682 OPS against right-handers in 2014, which ranked in the bottom half of the majors. And in part, why the club tied the offensively challenged Seattle Mariners with 634 runs scored, the 18th-lowest total in the sport.

While Sandoval had his share of struggles batting from the right side this past year, his .199/.244/.319 line was brought down by a .210 BABIP, per Baseball-Reference. His career OPS from the right side is .710, which is at least decent enough, even if it's nowhere close to his .850 OPS hitting lefty.

But Sandoval did show in the postseason that he can still get it done swinging righty:

Plus, having the Green Monster in left field would provide Sandoval the opportunity to rack up doubles with his contact-oriented, line-drive approach. And Boston needs him more for his work in the left-handed batter's box, where he hit .317/.363/.461 in 2014 and owns a career .304/.357/.493 line.

As to Sandoval's penchant for putting bat on ball, here are his strikeout and walk rates each year, relative to the MLB averages in those same categories:

SEASON	SANDOVAL K%	MLB K%	SANDOVAL BB%	MLB BB%
2009	13.1%	18.0%	8.2%	8.9%
2010	13.1%	18.5%	7.6%	8.5%
2011	13.5%	18.6%	6.9%	8.1%
2012	13.3%	19.8%	8.6%	8.0%
2013	13.5%	19.9%	8.0%	7.9%
2014	13.3%	20.4%	6.1%	7.6%

While Sandoval's walk rate has fluctuated some since his first full season (2009), it has stayed within the same range (6.1 percent to 8.6 percent) even though the league-wide average has dropped steadily.

And there's no question that Sandoval's ability to make contact remains as consistent as ever—he has whiffed between 13.1 percent and 13.5 percent every year—while the major league rate has spiked considerably since 2012 and established an all-time high at 20.4 percent in 2014, per FanGraphs.

John Tomase of the Boston Herald touched on this matter, writing:

"

Sandoval’s offensive profile is even better than it appears, particularly if you believe pitchers will continue to hold the upper hand next year. Sandoval is a free swinger who is one of the best contact hitters in the game.

He has never walked 55 times in a season, but he has never struck out more than 85, either.

"

Sandoval plays above-average defense, too, which is an aspect of his game that often is underrated, if not outright overlooked, given all the criticism leveled at him for his rotund shape.

To that topic—Sandoval's much-talked-about, often-criticized weight—his agent, Gustavo Vasquez, made it clear to Joon Lee of Over the Monster that Sandoval intends to stick with the trainer who helped him drop pounds and get in better shape last offseason.

"Pablo has his personal trainer 24/7 and he will stay [with him] until he retires," Vasquez says. "His brother will help him [with his diet] and workouts."

And even if Sandoval starts to lose the battle against his body once he gets past 30 years old and into the final years of his contract, he always could shift to first base or designated hitter. Mike Napoli's contract is up after 2015, and despite popular opinion, the soon-to-be 39-year-old Ortiz isn't going to stick around forever.

Beyond all of the above, there's also the inarguable fact that Sandoval has been a fantastic performer in the playoffs.

Although Kaufman argues Boston should pass on Pablo, he does point out a huge, inescapable plus in Sandoval's corner: "The infielder is a three-time World Series champ with a career .344 postseason average and .935 OPS. In the championship round, Sandoval has a .426 average, three homers, eight RBI, and a whopping 1.162 OPS in a dozen contests, along with one MVP honor."

All told, Sandoval owns a career .344/.389/.545 line with 21 runs, six homers and 20 RBI in 167 plate appearances across 39 games in October. And he just set the all-time record for most hits in a single postseason with 26.

For a large-market franchise like the Red Sox that expects to contend every year, having a player with that kind of history of success could be considered a bonus.

Other teams obviously are in the mix for Sandoval, too, including the Chicago White Sox, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. And, of course, the Giants have made re-signing the third baseman their No. 1 priority, per Alex Pavlovic of the San Jose Mercury News.

There's also the matter of Sandoval reportedly seeking a six-year pact, per Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle, which could turn off some clubs, even the Red Sox, who would prefer a five-year deal.

But whether a fifth year is enough to get it done or it takes an extra one for Boston to land Sandoval, this could be a great match. For both sides.

Statistics are accurate through the 2014 season and courtesy of MLB.com, Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs unless otherwise noted.

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