The Red Sox bullpen carousel just did a full loop. Tommy Kahnle, the well-traveled right-hander who was designated for assignment and elected free agency on July 6, is back in the organization on a minor league contract, according to MLBTradeRumors.
MLBTradeRumors confirmed the Red Sox re-signed Kahnle to a minor league deal.
It's a quiet, no-frills move, but it says a lot about where Boston's bullpen stands heading into the trade deadline stretch. Kahnle's first stint with the Sox this season didn't go well — he made 8 appearances after getting called up on June 4 and got roughed up, including a 4-run outing against the Nationals on June 30 that helped seal his DFA. Now he heads back to Triple-A Worcester as depth, not a guaranteed roster piece.
Kahnle isn't just some replacement-level arm, though. He's a 12-year veteran who's bounced through the Rockies, White Sox, Yankees, Dodgers and Tigers organizations, and he was a key cog in the Yankees' 2024 World Series run, tossing 7 scoreless innings across the Championship Series and World Series before allowing 2 runs in New York's clinching Game 5 loss to the Dodgers. That pedigree is exactly why Boston is willing to run it back so soon after things went sideways.
For a team trying to sort out bullpen questions before the trade deadline, adding a veteran arm on a no-risk minors deal costs nothing and buys optionality. If Kahnle rediscovers anything close to his 2024 form at Worcester, he's a phone call away from another big-league look. If not, the Red Sox are out nothing but a roster spot at Triple-A. Either way, expect this to be far from the last bullpen move Boston makes before the deadline.