Chaim Bloom has a plan to acquire talent this offseason that includes adding at least one relief pitcher. And it sounds like Tommy Kahnle is on his wish list.
The Boston Red Sox are in "advanced talks" with Kahnle in free agency, and the 33-year-old right-hander could make his decision as soon as Tuesday, The Boston Globe's Alex Speier reports.
While there are other teams interested in Kahnle, the Red Sox are "among the finalists" to sign him, per Speier.
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Kahnle has pitched just 13.2 innings over the past three seasons after undergoing Tommy John surgery in August 2020. He appears to have made a full recovery, however, pitching very well for the Los Angeles Dodgers down the stretch in 2022 with one run allowed over nine outings and 14 strikeouts in 12.2 innings.
Red Sox fans will remember Kahnle from his three-and-a-half-year stint with the New York Yankees from 2017 to 2020. The New York native was a dominant setup man at his peak who racked up 12.9 strikeouts per nine innings with the Yankees in 2019.
Kahnle's injury history obviously is a red flag, but if healthy, he'd provide a significant boost to a Red Sox bullpen that had the second-worst ERA in the American League last season (4.59), ahead of only the Kansas City Royals.