According to WEEI's Rob Bradford, the Red Sox have resigned 34 year old lefty Craig Breslow to a one year deal worth 2 million. The deal doesn't include any incentives and it is believed that it won't be announced until after Decemeber 28th due to 40 man roster moves. The lefty has spent the last two and a half seasons in Boston after coming over from the DBacks at the trade deadline. Last month Breslow had his option worth 4 million for 2015 declined by the Sox who know get to keep him for half price. It was reported that Breslow's decision at the very end had come down to the Sox and Cubs before he ultimately chose to resign.
The 2014 season would be one to forget for Breslow as he would struggle mightily. In 60 games (54.1 innings) he would post a 5.96 ERA with a whip of 1.86 while giving up a total of 8 homeruns. Breslow had averaged an awful 12 hits every 9 innings, and it begun to seem as if his stuff just wasn't there anymore. His fastball didn't have the same velocity it once did and his control of his pitches was nowhere to be found. It's yet to be seen if the injuries he had dealt with are the reason for these issues, or if it's just due to him getting older. His workload throughout the championship run in 2013 may have put a little too much wear on himself, this will be his first full off-season since the end of the 2012 season. Maybe just some regular time off will be what Breslow needs in order to regain the dominant form he held when helping the Sox to the World Series.
Going back to that 2013 season is probably the reason the Sox were so willing to depend on Breslow bouncing back for 2015. The Yale graduate was one of the most important parts of the bullpen in 2013 filling different roles throughout the season and working the late innings in games during the postseason. Craig would register an insane ERA of 1.81 while only allowing 3 homeruns in 61 games. His whip for the season would end up being a cool 1.12 while his BB/9 ratio was almost a full 2 walks less then what it ended up being in 2014. Without Breslow the Sox don't likely win the world series back in 2013, his role during that season has made him a huge fan favorite in Boston.
A bounce back season from Breslow would be huge for the Sox in 2015, if he can return to anything near his 2013 form the bullpen has a good chance of being one of the best in baseball. With the Sox not currently having a true ace they will likely depend on their bullpen a lot so it's important they strengthen it to their best ability while they can. Breslow fills the last immediate need the Sox havd in the bullpen so don't expect any significant moves involving it unless a trade takes place or the Sox take a flier on a guy to keep him around for depth. Quite often pitchers working in the bullpen are horrible one year and great the next, it's smart to take a chance on a guy like Craig who for the most part during his career has always been really good. Not to mention it never hurts to bring back a guy who was a hero on a World Series championship team just a year ago.