Left-handed relief is often one of the most overlooked parts of a roster. While it’s not flashy, it’s important. While the three-batter minimum means they need to be able to attack both sides of the plate, they’re often called on to clean up a mess, inheriting runners and matching up with a left-handed hitter. 

The Boston Red Sox lacked left-handed relief help, and reportedly are in agreement with Danny Coulombe on a one-year deal, according to Ken Rosenthal. Chris Cotillo reported that the deal is for $1 million. 

Coulombe spent 2025 with the Minnesota Twins and Texas Rangers. He posted a 2.30 ERA and 3.30 FIP in 43 innings, striking out 24.4% of hitters and walking 10.2%. 

He held lefties to a .526 OPS, while righties posted a .614 OPS. Against same-handed hitters, he primarily threw a cutter. He spotted it on the glove side consistently, where it returned a massive 52.9% chase rate and a stellar 23.7% swinging strike rate. He paired it with a sinker, often thrown backdoor, which hitters took for called strikes regularly. The latter pitch had a low zone rate, which limited its overall effectiveness, but it avoided hard contact and returned called strikes when it did land in the zone. He mixed in a four-seam fastball and a sweeper to lefties as well, with limited success.

Against righties, walks were an issue. He handed out free passes to 13.3% of right-handed hitters due to low strike rates with his most-used pitches. His cutter was effective, but his four-seam fastball and sweeper accounted for about half of his pitches, and neither returned a strike rate over 60%. 

Coulombe joins a group that lacks major league experience. Outside of incumbent closer Aroldis Chapman, Jovani Moran has the most major league experience: 95 innings over four seasons. Tyler Samaniego was acquired this offseason and could figure into the mix as well. 

The veteran has had success in the past, but there are questions about his strike-throwing. While he leaned into his cut fastball last season, the velocity decreased from 2024. If that trend continues and hitters stop expanding the zone, he’ll lose his best source of strikes and could see his walk issues exacerbated. It’s a low-cost investment for the Red Sox, though, and adds experience to a group that needs depth.

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