Tomase: These ‘Forgotten Four' Red Sox could make impact in 2022

Normally the first Red Sox would be showing up in Fort Myers this week for the unofficial start of spring training, moseying into JetBlue Park to drop off their stuff, get reacquainted, and prepare for pitchers and catchers next week.

This isn't a normal year, so none of that is happening. We have instead been left to speculate not so much on the lockout -- somebody poke me with a stick when it's over -- but the roster. And we've sunk our teeth into everything from the odds that Chris Sale bounces back strong two years removed from Tommy John surgery, to the possibility of a contract extension for Rafael Devers, to the futures of J.D. Martinez, Xander Bogaerts, and perhaps a big-name free agent or two.

What we haven't done is dive a little deeper. Some pretty pivotal contributors are either under contract or floating in free agent limbo who could make serious impacts on the 2022 season, so let's give these forgotten four their due.

Alex Verdugo

Some of us have been unabashed Verdugo fans since day one, loving his energy, all-fields approach, enthusiasm, hustle, demeanor. Verdugo plays with passion, which isn't always a given in Boston.

However, after a hot start that had him on the periphery of the All-Star conversation, Verdugo turned in a pedestrian season. He hit .289 with 13 homers, 63 RBIs, and a .777 OPS. Out of 50 players who saw time in the outfield and appeared in at least 140 games, Verdugo ranked 38th in homers, 35th in RBIs, and 26th in OPS.

He doesn't turn 26 until May and 2021 marked his first season unmarred by injury. So that's a positive. He also showed up in the playoffs, hitting .310 and consistently delivering quality at-bats that produced a team-high five walks vs. the Astros in the ALCS when everyone else was swinging for the moon.

So what is he? Think about Andrew Benintendi's ceiling -- hitting .300 with maybe 20 homers, playing solid defense in left field, and setting the table for the sluggers lower in the order.

There's no reason that's not in there, but Verdugo is reaching a make-or-break moment. He'll probably earn a little over $3 million in arbitration before bumping up to $6 or $7 million in 2023. That's where former teammate Hunter Renfroe morphed from overachiever to trade bait. Verdugo must establish himself as a long-term piece of the future or risk meeting a similar fate.

Nick Pivetta

If there's a Verdugo of the pitching staff, Pivetta's your man. He carried a 6-0 record and 3.86 ERA into June before floundering, finishing 9-8 with a 4.53 ERA and 175 strikeouts in 155 innings. He delivered some highs, like nearly no-hitting the Rays and winning a 1-0 matchup against Mets ace Jacob deGrom, but by the end of the year, he was basically a four-inning pitcher.

Like Verdugo, however, he rallied in the playoffs and did as much as anyone on the staff to help reach the ALCS. He went 1-0 with a team-leading 2.63 ERA in 13.2 innings, delivering four innings of gutsy shutout relief before Christian Vazquez's walkoff won Game 3 of the ALDS vs. the Rays.

We'll re-ask the question: so what is he? The addition of Sale and the return of All-Star Nathan Eovaldi give the Red Sox a solid 1-2 punch atop the rotation. On paper, Pivetta would fit best in the No. 4 spot, but as things stand now, he's probably your third man again.

The tall right-hander is about to turn 29 and he wouldn't be the first pitcher to make a leap at that age, especially considering his meandering career path with the Phillies. His K rate, velocity, and spin rate ranked in the game's top third, so there are solid building blocks.

He needs to keep the ball in the park after allowing 24 homers, and he needs to prove he can stay durable for an entire season. With left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez gone and veteran left-hander Rich Hill probably a better fit at the bottom of the rotation, Pivetta will enter camp with the third spot his to lose.

Josh Taylor

It would've been fascinating to see how Alex Cora handled the bullpen vs. the Braves had the Red Sox reached the World Series, because this group was spent.

All-Star closer Matt Barnes pitched himself right off the roster. Veteran Adam Ottavino bounced between stalwart and unreliable. Ryan Brasier was unhittable until he wasn't. Hansel Robles looked like the answer before becoming a mop-up man. It should come as only a mild surprise that the Red Sox didn't record a single save in the playoffs.

Then there was Taylor. He appeared in six games and only allowed a run in one of them. Four times he protected a one- or two-run lead. After a terrible start to April that had him firing balls in frustration, Taylor may have been the second-best reliever on the team behind Garrett Whitlock. He delivered similarly in 2019.

He's never mentioned as a closer candidate and maybe that's fine, since he still walks about a batter every other inning. But with the Red Sox looking at a revamped bullpen, Taylor feels like as safe an option as Cora has at his disposal.

Jose Iglesias

And now for the free agent. When the Red Sox acquired Iglesias in September, they did so knowing he'd be ineligible for the postseason. By the end of the year, it became clear that they wouldn't have reached October without him.

The former Sox farmhand, a defensive wizard at short, not only made a seamless transition to second, he hit .356 with a .915 OPS. He then grabbed his pompoms in the playoffs, encouraging replacement Christian Arroyo and genuinely loving life on his first playoff team since playing for the doomed 2013 Tigers.

Iglesias is what he is as a hitter, a chopper machine who'll beat out infield hits and deliver the occasional double. He's 32 and unlikely to provide much in the way of sustainable offensive value.

He could absolutely make an impact on defense, however, and that's where the Red Sox struggled last year. In a vacuum, he'd play short instead of Xander Bogaerts, but that's not happening. As a backup shortstop with a chance to start every day at second, however, he could solidify Boston's infield defense.

It remains to be seen if the two parties are interested in a reunion or if Iglesias would rather use his hot September to land a job with a club in need of a full-time shortstop, whether it's the Twins, the Cubs, or even the Yankees.

The question for those teams, and to a lesser extent the Red Sox, will be what to make of his underwhelming defensive metrics at short with the Angels before being released. Did they signal the start of an irreversible decline, or simply the performance of a player who admits lacking mental engagement in Anaheim?

This much is for sure -- the Iglesias of September deserves better than to be forgotten.