Dave Dombrowski sets expectations for Sandoval

Let’s clear the air right now: what’s Pablo Sandoval supposed to do this season?

Well, if you’ve been wondering that, then you’ll be happy. Why, you might ask? Because Dave Dombrowski (partially) answered that question.

He went on an ESPN podcast. Yeah, that’s right, ESPN does podcasts now for some reason. But he let the world know the expectations. He pretty much said they’re not expecting Pablo to carry the lineup but he thinks the guy should be a solid third baseman. You wanna know what he said for stats?

Do you really wanna know?

OK. Dombrowski said they’re expecting Sandoval to hit .270-.275, hit 12-15 home runs and knock in 70-75 runners. And they want Sandoval to be a sound third baseman….

Hmm… I don’t really comprehend that…

Potentially, Sandoval could do all that and be s productive player. Potentially, he could do all that and not be though. There’s not really a set on-base percentage, OPS or any real fielding stats to go along with it. For the sake of being able to sleep at night, let’s just say those numbers are in line with what he did in his final three seasons in San Francisco. Oh, and he won the World Series twice in that span.

So — essentially — they just want him to be an overpaid, yet solid, third baseman. No big deal. They have money. He’ll serve his purpose. He’ll be better than Travis Shaw was last year. He could be good in the postseason. Yeah. It could all work out. Or — at least — that’s what the Red Sox think….

The depth there isn’t that good, so the team is kind of depending on it. Brock Holt and Josh Rutledge are the backups. That’s not really quality depth at third base. Both are more middle infielders with Holt being a quite decent left fielder too. Plus their power is nil.