Welcome back to the 2025-26 edition of Smash or Pass, in which we examine potential free agent and trade targets to determine whether the Red Sox should pursue them and what it would take to land them.
Today we look at a fireballer out of the bullpen.
Who is he and where does he come from?
He’s Seranthony Dominguez. He’s played for two of the four other teams in the AL East in the last 18 months, most recently for Toronto after being traded across the ballpark in between games of a double-header with Baltimore. The image of him serving up a 97 mile an hour meatball to Shohei Ohtani in the World Series may be burned in the mind of Blue Jays fans, but he pitched pretty solidly in the postseason, as he also did in Philadelphia in 2022’s “Red October.” The 31-year-old from the Dominican Republic made his debut as a 23-year-old righty in 2018 for the Phils and, almost a decade later, he’s sprouted interest from multiple teams as a setup option, including the Red Sox.
Is he any good?
Yes. All jokes about the Red Sox being “interest kings” aside, they’re interested for good reason. Aside from some control issues(he once led the league in wild pitches and Savant has him in the first percentile for walk percentage), Dominguez is among one of the very best relievers on the market this year. He has that aforementioned high-nineties fastball that has touched 100 on occasion but averages 97.7, and that leads to a whiff percentage that places him in the highest sixth-percentile in the sport. He struggles with control on his secondary pitches (see below) but he replaced his slider with a sweeper, and that sweeper approaches 90 and generally looks very sharp.
TLDR; just give me his 2025 stats.
62 2/3 IP, 4-4, 3.16 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 36 BB, 79 K, 144 ERA+
Why would he be a good fit on the 2025 Red Sox?
If you’ve sweated who the Red Sox are going to turn to in the bullpen, this is a good bullet point for you. Dominguez has made at least fifty appearances five times in his career, interrupted by a Tommy John surgery in 2020. Since returning, he’s made 241 appearances, placing him just outside of the top 20 of relievers, and more than any member of the Red Sox during any of those four years made in that time. As I’ve said multiple times this offseason, the best ability is availability, and the Red Sox have lacked durable relievers.
Why wouldn’t he be a good fit on the Red Sox?
For results-oriented folks, Seranthony’s metrics as far as runs crossing the plate has been probably one notch below satisfactory. At 3.16, his ERA was the lowest since his debut season, and his FIP was just a hare higher at 3.47. But, in this four-year healthy stretch of his, the ERA inches closer to 4 (3.60). Also, that walk rate is concerning, if for no other reason than it being a matter of efficiency. The Red Sox defense hasn’t earned the trust to deal with extra baserunners, nor does Dominguez have the ideal ground ball percentage to help the gloves out.
Also, to readdress the “interest kings” moniker, Dominguez has an estimated AAV of about $8 million. This is more than the Red Sox are used to paying for relief arms. For reference, Justin Wilson landed under 3 million dollars, Matt Strahm was signed for exactly 3 before making considerably more money from Philadelphia, and the list goes on. Brennan Bernadino is leaving a Bernardino-sized hole in terms of how many innings the team will need from their bullpen, but 8 million dollars, to a stingy John Henry, is a lot more than league minimum, and would make Dominguez the second-highest paid reliever on the team.
Show me a cool highlight.
There’s something about facing your old team and right away showing them up that sits so comically with me. Here’s Dominguez striking out two Orioles on the day he woke up in an Orioles uniform.
Smash or pass?
Dominguez is a high-leverage arm that, despite giving up walks, very rarely burns the bullpen. He’s reliable, durable, and has high velocity. The Red Sox have still not signed a free agent. That’s just not acceptable territory for them to be in. While the bullpen may not be their first priority, it can’t be an afterthought, and I’m not sure I’m entirely convinced by Rule 5 pick Ryan Watson, although I said that about Justin Slaten a couple of years ago, and Garrett Whitlock a few years before that, and look at them now. Still, as we saw by the dire straits the Sox found themselves in even after given the opportunity to acquire some arms at the deadline, depth can whittle away over the length of the season. I’m smashing.
