Red Sox agree to minor-league deal with former All-Star first baseman C.J. Cron

The Red Sox have agreed to terms on a minor-league contract with free agent first baseman C.J. Cron, as was first reported by MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo. The deal, which includes an invite to major-league spring training, would allow Cron to earn $2 million if he is added to Boston’s active roster and up to $500,000 in performance bonuses, according to The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier.

Cron, 34, is a veteran of 10 big-league seasons who most recently split the 2023 campaign with the Rockies and Angels. Due to lingering back issues, the right-handed hitter was limited to just 71 games between the two clubs, batting .248/.295/.434 with 12 doubles, 12 home runs, 37 RBIs, 38 runs scored, 17 walks, and 65 strikeouts over 278 plate appearances. He got into just 10 games for the Halos after being traded from Colorado to Los Angeles in late July and ended the year on the injured list.

Despite those disappointing results, Cron is just two years removed from making the National League All-Star team after slashing .257/.315/.468 with 29 homers and a career-high 102 RBIs over 150 games (632 plate appearances) for the Rockies in 2022. That came after he clubbed 28 home runs and posted a career-best .905 OPS in his first season with Colorado in 2021.

For his major-league career, which began in 2014, Cron is a lifetime .260/.320/.471 hitter with 194 doubles, 10 triples, 187 home runs, 604 runs driven in, 470 runs scored, 10 stolen bases, 268 walks, and 928 strikeouts across 1,049 total games (4,043 plate appearances) with the Angels, Rays, Twins, Tigers, and Rockies. In that time frame, the former first-round draft selection out of Utah has forged a .781 OPS against right-handed pitching and an .814 OPS against left-handed pitching, though he has struggled with southpaws to some degree in each of the last two seasons.

On the other side of the ball, Cron has been used exclusively as either a first baseman or designated hitter since debuting with the Angels in 2024. Between Colorado and Los Angeles last year, the 6-foot-4, 235-pounder logged 502 innings at first, where he produced zero defensive runs saved, one out above average, and an ultimate zone rating of 1.3, per FanGraphs.

After losing Justin Turner to the Blue Jays in free agency, the Red Sox came into camp this spring relatively thin on right-handed hitting depth at first base. Bobby Dalbec had been projected to make the team as a backup option behind the left-handed hitting Triston Casas, but Cron now figures to challenge him for that spot in the coming weeks.

As someone who is capable of playing first base, third base, and both corner outfield spots, Dalbec may offer more positional versatility than Cron, but his offensive floor is not at the same level. In addition to spelling Casas at first base when needed, Cron could also take some at-bats away from projected everyday DH Masataka Yoshida (another left-handed hitter) if he were to make the team out of camp.

In the more immediate future, Cron — who is expected to arrive in Fort Myers for his physical in the coming days — will not occupy a spot on Boston’s 40-man roster once his signing becomes official. He will, however, have the ability to opt out of his deal if he is not added to the major-league roster within five days of Opening Day (March 28). That, as noted by Cotillo, is his right as an Article XX(B) free agent.

Dalbec, meanwhile, has one minor-league option remaining. In other words, the 28-year-old slugger could be heading back to Triple-A Worcester (where he hit 33 home runs in 114 games last year) for the start of the 2024 season if he loses out to Cron in this battle for a roster spot at camp.