The Boston Red Sox have been baseball’s hottest team over the past few months, and now, the team are sitting at 63-51 on the season, putting them just six games back of the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League East division standings.
At the trade deadline, the team made some major moves to upgrade as well, and with Garrett Crochet potentially set to return later in the season, this is a team that’s shaping up as genuine World Series contenders in 2026. However, not everyone is buying in, and according to the latest reports, a veteran catcher has opted out of his minor league deal with the Red Sox in a surprising move.
Andrew Knizner Opts out of Red Sox Deal
GettyAndrew Knizner of the San Francisco Giants.
That would be 31-year-old veteran Andrew Knizner, who spent his 2025 campaign with the San Francisco Giants, and this season he signed a minor league deal with the Red Sox after opting out of his contract with the Colorado Rockies in hopes he could break the major league ranks in Boston. At Triple-A with the Red Sox, he’s done everything necessary to prove he can be effective, but after no opportunities, he’s now made the decision to move on.
Given that the team have gotten some great play out of Carlos Narvaez and Connor Wong, with the team recently acquiring Adley Rutschman, and as a result, Knizner has officially opted out of his deal, making him a free agent according to Jon Heyman.
On paper, this move makes sense for Knizner, as the acquisition of Rutschman has all but denied any MLB opportunity for Knizner in Boston, and given that he still believes he can be a contributor on a good team, it makes sense that he would want to explore other opportunities around Major League Baseball.
Andrew Knizner Looking for Next MLB Opportunity
In the minor leagues this season, Knizner has been a fantastic hitter, hitting .317 with a .919 OPS across 21 games for Triple-A Worcester along with 2 home runs and 16 RBI in just 21 games played, showing that at 31-years-old, he’s still got plenty to offer at the next level.
However, in 2025 at the big league level he just wasn’t as effective, hitting .221 with just one home run in 33 games with the San Francisco Giants, and while he can provide serviceable defense behind the plate, given what teams are looking for at the catching position, he just clearly doesn’t have what it takes to be a significant piece at the MLB level anymore.
Ultimately, this is the second minor-league deal that Knizner has opted out of this season after departing the Colorado Rockies due to a lack of opportunity at the big league level, and with so much catching talent out there, it’s unclear if he’ll find a place that will provide him an MLB opportunity in the near future, but given his experience, don’t be shocked to see him handed another minor league deal soon.
Like HEAVY’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
The post Seven-Year MLB Catcher Opts out of Deal with the Red Sox appeared first on HEAVY.