Pablo Sandoval.... See Ya!

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ALEX REIMER
JULY 14, 2017 - 10:44 AM
Pablo Sandoval's time in Boston has come to an end.

The Red Sox announced Friday they have designated Sandoval for assignment, meaning the team has 10 days to trade or release him outright. Given that Sandoval has $49 million remaining on his contract, the latter option is far more plausible than the former.

It was a horrifc stint in Boston for Sandoval, who signed a five-year, $95 million deal with the Red Sox in December 2014. He played 126 games in 2015, batting .245 with a .658 OPS and 10 home runs. Though the 30-year-old third baseman's OPS had declined for four consecutive years with the Giants, even the most ardent pessimists could not have predicted how horrific his short-lived Red Sox career would turn out. The Providence Journal's Tim Britton calculates Sandoval has been the least valuable player to ever receive a contract worth more than $90 million.

Sandoval has only played in 35 games over the last two seasons, missing time with various ailments. Most recently, he was on the disabled list with an ear infection. His rehab assigment was scheduled to end Monday.

In addition to his putrid offensive production (career batting line with the Red Sox was .237/.286/.360), his defense declined as well. This season, Sandoval even struggled with routine plays at the hot corner.

As WEEI's John Tomase points out, Sandoval's legacy is perhaps best defined by this statistic: the Red Sox went 69-81 when he started, and 221-192 when he didn't.

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