With First Base Open, the Time to Salvage Allen Craig is Now

With the trade of Mike Napoli to the Texas Rangers, the Red Sox now have a vacancy at first base. With the Red Sox on their way to another last place finish, the team should begin to take inventory of the players under contract and determine who can contribute in the future. Given this, it makes sense for the Red Sox to call up Allen Craig and give him the opportunity at first base.

Craig’s first two opportunities did not go so well in Boston. He batted .128 with the Red Sox in 2014 with only 12 hits and four extra base hits in 94 at-bats. In 2015, Craig showed no improvements. In 24 games, he batted .135 with seven hits in 52 at-bats before being optioned to Pawtucket.

In the minors, Craig has improved his batting average. He is currently batting .271 in 258 at-bats, a good enough sample size to gather a sense of productivity. Given that Napoli batted only .207 with the Red Sox, Craig would seem like an improvement.

However, Craig lacks the productivity that Napoli had.

Craig only has three home runs and eight doubles in Pawtucket, indicating a lack of power. Even though Napoli only batted .207, he did have 13 home runs and 32 extra base hits.

Craig isn’t the only option the Red Sox have either.

Recent call-up Travis Shaw, who has also seen playing time at third base, could replace Napoli. Since being called-up on August 1, Shaw has gone seven for 17 with two home runs and five runs scored as the only active first baseman on the Red Sox’s current roster.

Super utility-man Brock Holt has proven he can play any position as well.

Holt has struggled since the all-star break batting only .209 opposed to his .292 batting average prior to the break. Holt has also seen most of his playing time at second base while Dustin Pedroia remains out with a strained hamstring. When Pedroia returns to the lineup, Holt will return to the super utility role, but as long as first base remains open, the Red Sox’s lone all-star will forever be considered the apparent heir.

Shaw and Holt both seem like productive replacements to Napoli, but neither has any history in the major leagues, giving Craig the advantage.

As a member of the St. Louis Cardinals, Craig had a fair share of productive seasons as a vital member in the Cardinals’ offense. An all-star in 2013, the Cardinals rushed Craig’s return to the lineup during the 2013 World Series as a designated hitter against our very own Boston Red Sox. The Cardinals felt his production would give them the advantage against the Red Sox in the pursuit towards the World Series Banner.

In 2012, Craig hit 22 home runs. In both 2012 and 2013, Craig had more than 90 RBIs while batting .300 or better from 2011 through 2013.

This is why the Red Sox traded for Craig.

They obtained a player with a history of producing at an affordable price. Craig is currently owed $33 million through 2018, which at the time seemed like a bargain. Now not so much, but what if Craig found himself producing like he did in 2013, does the average annual salary of $11 million per year seem all that outrageous?

With the Red Sox playing for next season, they should take this time to evaluate what they acquired in trading for Allen Craig.

Is Craig a .130 hitter with no power or is he a .300 hitter in a really bad slump? The Red Sox will never know until they give Craig a chance at playing every day and with first base now open, the time to salvage Allen Craig is now.