Hampus Lindholm, left, and Trevor Story were signed by the Bruins and Red Sox, respectively, over the weekend. Associated Press photos
In a 24-hour span, Boston fans were reminded that this is a championship-driven town. The Bruins and Red Sox made significant moves designed to turn good teams into championship contenders.
The Bruins struck first. With the NHL trade deadline looming, General Manager Don Sweeney acquired the top-four defenseman his team badly needed. Hampus Lindholm heads east from Anaheim (along with minor-league defenseman Kodie Curran) in exchange for a first-round pick this summer, a second-round pick in 2023 and defensemen Urho Vaakanainen and John Moore.
Bruins Coach Bruce Cassidy will now have the luxury of throwing out one of the league’s top defensive pair (if he matches Lindholm with Charlie McAvoy) or spreading around his depth (putting Lindholm with Brandon Carlo as more of a shutdown duo).
While the first option might seem most exciting, it’s the second plan that better addresses what the Bruins sorely lacked in the playoffs last year. Boston needed a bigger, stronger defense against the Islanders in the second round of the 2021 Stanley Cup playoffs and lacked it after Carlo joined Kevan Miller on the injured list.
Lindholm is a dynamic two-way player, but also brings the size (6-foot-4, 216 pounds) the Bruins’ defensive corps have lacked.
A little more than 12 hours later news broke that the Red Sox had agreed to terms with infielder Trevor Story. Story, one of the top defensive shortstops in the game, would move to second base and pair with Xander Bogaerts to shore up the middle of the infield.
Story’s contract is the first big-money, long-term deal agreed to by Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom. It came as a blow to critics who said Bloom would never spend money on big contracts, and that the Red Sox were going to operate like a small-market team.
It also comes at a time when the American League East is loading up for the coming season. The Blue Jays added slugger Matt Chapman to a lineup featuring some of the top young stars in the game. The Yankees traded for Josh Donaldson and Isiah Kiner-Falefa.
How big of an impact will Story have on the division?
“I’m not too excited about it,” Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge told MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand. “I know what that guy can do.”
Story brings power, speed and defense to the Red Sox. He improves the lineup in all three areas. Bloom almost always looks to address short-term and long-term needs with his deals, and the signing of Story is no different.
With an .863 OPS, Story has averaged more than 29 home runs a year in 162-game seasons with Colorado. That’s an impact bat added to an already robust Boston lineup. He’s also one of the top defensive shortstops in the game, a Gold Glove finalist in 2019 who committed only 14 errors in 138 games last season.
He won’t be playing shortstop in Boston. At least not this year. But Bogaerts can opt out of his contract after this season, and likely will given the rising salaries made by major league shortstops.
Now the Sox have insurance at the game’s most important position. If Bogaerts chooses to leave, Story can slide over to his natural position. If Bogaerts stays, the Sox will continue to have one of the strongest offensive infields in the league.
After coming within two wins of the World Series last year, the Red Sox want to be in a position to go further in 2022. After losing in six games to the Islanders last year the Bruins hope to follow suit.
It was fitting the Bruins news broke in the final hours of winter, while the Sox news came out just as spring arrived. Along with the resurgent Celtics, there’s hope that there will be plenty of playoff action in the seasons ahead.
Tom Caron is a studio host for Red Sox broadcasts on NESN and a Lewiston High School graduate.
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