Benintendi trade beginning to pay dividends for Red Sox

May 29—Andrew Benintendi didn't have much of a future in Boston, but anytime you trade a quality big league starter you hope to get something meaningful back.

For a while things were looking shaky, but now more than a year later the Benintendi deal is finally starting to bear fruit for Boston.

When Benintendi was dealt to the Kansas City Royals before the 2021 season, the Red Sox received Franchy Cordero and a package of prospects in return. At first Cordero looked like a colossal bust, contributing little over 48 big league games in Boston last year, but he has since turned things around and helped stabilize the Red Sox shaky first base situation.

Meanwhile, Josh Winckowski, the top prospect acquired in the deal, has emerged as one of the top pitching prospects in the Red Sox organization. This weekend he made his MLB debut in Game 2 of Saturday's doubleheader against the Baltimore Orioles, and he could potentially help the big league club out of the bullpen on a more consistent basis as the season goes along.

Saturday Winckowski flashed some intriguing potential before things got away from him in the third inning. He wound up allowing four runs on six hits and three walks along with four strikeouts over three innings in an eventual 4-2 Boston loss.

"You think about that when you're a kid, you want to be a big leaguer, and he's a big leaguer now. Obviously there's work to do but you can see the stuff. It's really good," said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. "You can see the potential and he's a kid that we really like."

Winckowski may yet become an important part of the pitching staff, perhaps even within the next couple of months, but for now the most impactful player in the deal has been Cordero.

Even if he hasn't necessarily been a star, Cordero's impact on the club has been substantial. At the time of his promotion the Red Sox were getting virtually no production from the first base position, but since stepping in Cordero entered Saturday batting .254 with a .732 OPS and a couple of dramatic moments, including a rally-sparking triple and a walk-off grand slam during last weekend's four-game sweep of the Seattle Mariners.

That's quite a turnaround from last year when he batted .189 with a horrific .497 OPS, but those who have watched him up close say they aren't surprised.

"I think it's just confidence, he's been the same Franchy that I've known since last year, I think he's just gotten more confident and that's helped him out this year," said Red Sox reliever John Schreiber, who has played with Cordero at both the triple-A and big league level. "That's the main thing when you come up here, to have confidence and know that it's the same game you were playing down in Triple-A."

Whether or not the Red Sox ultimately get as much out of the trade as the Royals remains to be seen. Benintendi has been productive in Kansas City and has gotten off to an excellent start this season, entering the weekend batting .321, but the Red Sox also reached the ALCS last fall without him and would be the clear winners if Winckowski winds up becoming a big league mainstay.

All things considered, the Red Sox can't be too disappointed by how things have played out so far.

Eovaldi goes the distance, Sox split doubleheader

Nathan Eovaldi picked a great time to pitch the first complete game of his career, going the distance in Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader to beat the Orioles 5-3.

Eovaldi went the full nine innings, allowing three runs (two earned) on seven hits with six strikeouts and a walk. The only runs he surrendered came on an RBI single by Anthony Santander in the first inning and a two-run home run to Robinson Chirinos in the fifth.

"It definitely meant a lot to me," Eovaldi said. "To be able to come in today, especially with the doubleheader, and them entrusting me to finish the game, it meant a lot."

Boston took a 3-1 lead in the second on an RBI double by Jackie Bradley Jr. and a two-run single by Kiké Hernández, and after Chirinos tied it in the fifth the Red Sox retook the lead for good when Bobby Dalbec hit a pinch hit solo home run in the sixth. Christian Arroyo drove in a run on an infield hit in the seventh and Eovaldi took care of business from there.

The Red Sox lineup couldn't muster any sustained offense in Game 2's 4-2 loss. Christian Vázquez had a terrific day, going 3 for 4 with a double and an RBI, and in the bottom of the ninth Christian Arroyo drove in a run on an RBI groundout as part of a promising rally that fell short after Kiké Hernández grounded into a game-ending double play.

The bullpen pitched six scoreless innings, but it wasn't enough to overcome Ramon Urías' RBI single and Rougned Odor's three-run home run off Winckowski in the third.

Email: mcerullo@northofboston.com. Twitter: @MacCerullo.