Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow has already admitted that the Sox will be looking for starting pitching this offseason. He met with reporters at the General Managers Meetings in Las Vegas today, including Tim Healey of The Boston Globe, and provided a more specific target area.
“Because of the depth that we’ve built up over the last couple of years, we feel pretty good about just overall starting pitching, maybe No. 3-ish through No. 10-ish,” Breslow said. “And that’s not to take away from guys who are certainly capable of doing more, and more just to say I don’t think we’re going to spend a ton of time trying to add a No. 4, No. 5 starter.”
That’s a logical framing, considering the guys currently on the roster. Garrett Crochet gives the club a clear ace but then there’s a notable gap to the rest of the group. Brayan Bello is probably the #2 guy on paper right now, but he’s not really the kind of dominant force that one thinks of for that kind of role. He has a low-strikeout, high-grounder profile that should make him more of a solid back-end guy than a front-of-rotation killer.
Behind him, there are guys like Kutter Crawford, Cooper Criswell, Tanner Houck, Patrick Sandoval, Kyle Harrison, Payton Tolle, Connelly Early and others. Crawford has some intriguing numbers but his ERA has landed north of 4.00 in each of the past two seasons. Criswell is a low-strikeout swingman. Houck had Tommy John surgery in August and is going to miss most or all of 2026, meaning he might get non-tendered. Sandoval missed the entire 2025 season due to his own elbow surgery. Harrison, Tolle and Early are all intriguing young arms but they’re not established at the big league level.
Given the question marks in that group, it’s understandable that the club would be looking for a surefire upgrade. It also perhaps explains why the club didn’t make a qualifying offer to righty Lucas Giolito, who is now a free agent. Giolito posted a 3.41 ERA with the Sox this year but his 19.7% strikeout rate was subpar. He benefited from a .273 batting average on balls in play and 76.7% strand rate, which were both to the fortunate side. His 4.17 FIP and 4.65 SIERA suggested he deserved worse. He also finished the season on the injured list with an elbow issue. Bringing him back would have arguably been adding another No. 4 or No. 5 starter, as Breslow put it.
The Sox surely feel they can and need to do better than that. They were connected to Joe Ryan of the Twins before the deadline and perhaps they will revisit that pursuit. Ryan has a career 3.79 ERA with a 27.6% strikeout rate and 5.7% walk rate. The Twins appear to be doing some kind of reset and only control Ryan for through 2027, so he could be attainable this winter. Other impact starters potentially available on the trade block include MacKenzie Gore, Freddy Peralta, Sandy Alcantara and others.
Acquiring any of those players would involve giving up talented prospects or big leaguers. The Sox had one of the top farm systems in baseball not so long ago but they traded some notable talent to the White Sox in the Crochet deal and have also graduated a bunch of their top prospects to the majors.
A simpler path would be to just sign a free agent. This winter’s market has notable names such as Dylan Cease, Framber Valdez, Tatsuya Imai, Ranger Suárez, Michael King, Brandon Woodruff and others. Those players would cost more than the trade targets financially but wouldn’t require the Sox to give up prospects, though everyone in that group aside from Imai rejected a qualifying offer, meaning the Sox would be hurting their prospect pipeline in a different way.
Breslow also pointed to a plan on the offensive side of things. “There is just something about a bat in the middle of the lineup that forces another team to game plan against it that has a compounding effect on the rest of the roster,” Breslow said. “So we didn’t slug nearly as much as I think we can, or we will, and we’ll pursue opportunities to improve that.”
For the entire 2025 season, the Sox finished ninth in the majors in slugging percentage and tenth in isolated power. They’ve also lost some key bats in the past few months. They traded Rafael Devers to the Giants midseason. Alex Bregman opted out of his deal last week and became a free agent.
There are many potential options in free agency, though the Sox have a crowded outfield. The most logical spots to add would be the infield corners. Bregman’s departure leaves third base open. First base is a question mark with Triston Casas still injured. Nathaniel Lowe was holding that spot by the end of the 2025 season but he could be non-tendered this month.
Bringing back Bregman would be one straightforward solution, though it’s unclear if the Sox want to commit to him long-term. He is presumably hoping to land a longer deal this time around, after settling for a three-year, opt-out-laden pact last time. Besides Bregman, other corner infield free agents with big bats are Munetaka Murakami, Pete Alonso, Eugenio Suárez, Josh Naylor, Ryan O’Hearn and others. Willson Contreras and Christian Walker might be available on the trade market.
The free agent market also has Kyle Schwarber, who previously had a brief stint with the Sox that included some memorable time at first base. However, it may be hard to outbid the Phillies. There’s also the fact that Schwarber hits left-handed and the Boston lineup is already loaded with lefties.
“In a perfect world, I suppose we want to balance out the lineup a bit,” Breslow said on the subject. “That said, when you can hit the ball out of the park, it doesn’t really matter.” Murakami, Naylor and O’Hearn are also left-handed, whereas Alonso, Suárez, Contreras and Walker are righties.
It’s unclear what the Red Sox plan to spend on the 2026 squad. According to RosterResource, the club had a $207MM payroll in 2025 but a competitive balance tax number of $245MM. RR projects those numbers for $180MM and $216MM in 2026. Non-tendering Lowe and Houck would add more than $17MM of extra wiggle room.
One area of the roster where Breslow doesn’t plan to make big changes is the shortstop position. Per Christopher Smith of MassLive, Breslow said that Trevor Story will be the shortstop next year. Story recently decided not to opt-out of his contract. He is signed through 2027 with a club option for 2028.
After being injured for most of his first three seasons in Boston, Story had a nice return to form in 2025, despite a slow start. He hit .289/.334/.492 for a 124 wRC+ after the month of May. However, his season-long defensive numbers weren’t great. He was credited with minus-7 Defensive Runs Saved and minus-9 Outs Above Average. Despite that, Breslow and the Sox plan to keep Story out there next year.
There aren’t many great options for external upgrades. Bo Bichette is the top free agent but he’ll be expensive and his defense was worse than Story’s this year. Ha-Seong Kim is a solid defender but his offense wasn’t great in his first season after shoulder surgery. CJ Abrams is arguably the top trade candidate but is also not a great defender.
Internally, there’s an argument for trying Marcelo Mayer at short with Story bumped to second, though Mayer is still fairly unproven. He hit just .228/.272/.402 in his first 136 big league plate appearances. He missed more than a month due to a right wrist sprain.
Breslow also spoke about Mayer and said he needs to add strength. “[Getting stronger] will just help him manage the workload of a full season and just be able to withstand the demands of a full season, which is, frankly, something that he hasn’t been able to do,” Breslow said, per Healey. “And some of those have been just kind of these freak injuries, but others seem to maybe just be the accumulation of workload.” With Story returning to shortstop, Mayer could find playing time at second or third, depending on what moves the Sox make this winter.
Photo courtesy of Jerome Miron, Imagn Images
Red Sox Looking For Front-Of-The-Rotation Starter, Middle-Of-The-Order Bat
Who isn’t?
The Fodgers, but that’s it.
Right on the starter, wrong on the big bat.
The Red Sox should take a pass on Giolito and focus on:
Signing Alex Bregman to a 4 year contract at $30 million a year with incentives to earn $2 million extra for the number of games he plays each year (at 120, 130, 140, 150, & 160). That means Bregman can earn an additional $10 million each year if he plays 160 games that year. Add 2 more option years that would be picked up if he plays 140 games (no incentives) in year 4 and year 5. The total guaranteed money would be $120 million with an opportunity to earn up to $220 million. This contract would be a win-win for both sides.
&
Signing Pete Alonso to a similar contract; a 4 year contract at $25 million a year with incentives to earn $2 million extra for the number of games he plays each year (at 120, 130, 140, 150, & 160). That means Alonso can earn an additional $10 million each year if he plays 160 games that year. Add 2 more option years that would be picked up if he plays 140 games (no incentives) in year 4 and year 5. The total guaranteed money would be $100 million with an opportunity to earn up to $190 million. This contract would also be a win-win for both sides.
&
Trading for MacKenzie Gore, Hunter Greene, or both.
Is that wishful thinking?
Bregman did not walk away from 40 to sign for 30.
He walked away from 80 million, Texasman, to earn more than 80. 120mil is more than 80mil.
Nobody is giving him 40 a year.
Roman Anthony for Jacob DeGrom and Seager 👀
Troll!
Yoshida and Jordan Hicks for Wyatt Langford
Or Wyatt Earp 🤣
That’s a hard NO
Join the club, that’s what every decent team is looking for.
Red Sox looking for more runs scored, less opponent runs
You have to admit, it is a good strategy
Will it lead to more wins tho (scratches head)
Trade market is still in play for Boston. They made a bet on Campbell and Mayer is there. That makes Arias very expendable. Tolle, Early, Witherspoon, and Clarke are all very talented pitching prospects. Breslow can definitely go the trade route if he wants to.
Disagree arias is ‘expendable’…
Campbell doesnt have the tools for the left side of the infield, and if he makes anyone redindant, its Casas who sure regrets declining the extension offer of the past. The aging and oft-injured Story has 2 seasons left (assuming he’s healthy), and Mayer has, as noted by Breslow and well known by those following him in the minors, question marks around his durability.
Frankly, im surprised Breslow has doubled down on Story as shortstop given his arm strength issues and the brutal season he just had defensively.
Maybe not expendable but I don’t think Arias is a future star personally.
I think he’s a very safe starting SS but I don’t see the kind of ceiling that would kill you to trade away for an impactful piece right now. I don’t like Story at SS either. They’re in a tough spot since they locked up Campbell. I think Campbell if he wasn’t signed would’ve been a much better option to move and keep Arias. He’s lost a lot of his surplus value with $ already locked in.
Im not entirely down on Campbell yet, its too early and we will have a much better idea on how things will look in, I suspect, 2 more seasons.
As for Arias, if you look at what Kim signs for, that’s ideally your comp to Arias, value-wise for what you’re replacement cost would be on the open market.
Boston really cleared out a lot of their higher level infielders the past few seasons, either promoted or traded away. To be successful you need some competent farm pieces that can be called up during injuries for depth. It makes Arias more important in the medium term id think.
I’m not off Campbell yet. It was more of a positional fit. Story is locked in but he’d be better off at 2B. If Campbell wasn’t already paid I’d rather dish him out and keep Arias.
Im 100% with you that Story’s arm will play better at 2B than SS.
The IF defense really is a work in progress they need to get well sorted. Breslow.inherited a real mess of a MLB roster with all the DH-types, poor defenders, etc. They’ve got an impressive OF and need to make some moves that shore up the infield to take advantage of it, and that includes Story being an issue at SS. I hope last year was an anomaly, but realistically look at his age, weak arm, and all the rest to think they really need to sit down with him and look at a positional change.
Story at this point is a good short stop but has shown some diminishment. He would look like an outstanding second baseman though.
If Mayers is on the club he should be at shortstop.
Trade back for Devers? He’s been playing first base for San Francisco. Maybe he would be a fit and fill a need at first?
Ouch.
Too soon
Giants are quite satisfied with Devers…
tony – Give it time. Devers will show his true colors soon and the Giants will look to move his sulky backside elsewhere.
Will the Giants contribute 40% towards Devers’ contract so “Poor John” can have more spending money on his other toys?
Hope he kept receipts on other toys. The Reds are flailing w their acquisitions
Too whiny
Too slow* #FF7
Anyone else not impressed with the fa pitchers with qo’s? Same could be said of every pitcher on the Miami squad? Imai seems like an interesting choice and we could probably get him, though most fans are pretty gun shy from the last couple from Japan.
Not sure what you’re referring to as Shota, Yamamoto and Sasaki all have performed well or better w/ the latter two dominating in the World Series.
Meant more of the Sox fans being gunshy
Not sure what you’re referring to as Shota, Yamamoto and Sasaki all have performed well or better w/ the latter two dominating in the World Series
The problem is the Sox seem to be in a rut of their own making regarding Japanese players. They didn’t get much in signing Hirokazu Sawamura a few years back, so then shied away from going hard after Kodai Senga. They missed out on Seiya Suzuki so then gave an unwise contract overpay to Masataka Yoshida. They need to start evaluating these players individually and stop letting past decisions factor into things. Imai should definitely be considered by them.
Fa qo- more like fu qo, amirite?
alonso in fenway would be fun to watch (not the defense part)
Big slow polar bear, that tracks with the fans
Ozuna would be perfect
Cabrera for Early & Arias
Or Duran & Tolle for J Lopez & wallner
How about
Yoshida
Mayer
Casas
For
Arenado
Burleson
Contreras
Cash
Red Sox throw in some prospects and cash and you have a deal
Mayer is the real prize of the deal. Cardinals could use him with Wetherholt thats a ton of young upside in the infield. Maybe the Red Sox throw in a young pitcher like Dobbins.
Cards – That’s an incredibly silly trade proposal. Why would the Cards trade for 3 players who have missed more games over the past 2 years than they’ve played? 🤪 😜 🤪 😜
And you probably don’t know this, Chaim Bloom is in charge of running the Cards now and he’s the one who signed Yoshida to that ridiculous contract. Why would he make the same mistake twice by acquiring him? No offense but your thought process, if there even was one, is 💩.
Fever, all good points but I was looking at it from Boston’s perspective in that injuries aside, it was too much talent to exchange for past their prime or unfulfilled talent. As a Sox fan, I believe Casas to a lesser degree but definitely Mayer is worth more still.
If Bloom signed Yoshida, he must like the guy. He could be the one POBO that would trade for him.
No offense? Good thing you weren’t trying. You are, I assume, aware of the concept of disagreeing without being an insulting jerk?
JPR – You are, no need to assume, unaware of that person’s history.
stymee – Bloom had no idea Yoshida was injury prone and so weak defensively. Now he does.
And how would a guy like Yoshida fit into a rebuild? Even if he manages to stay healthy, he’s gone before the Cards are ready to compete again.
dewey – Rooster is the key. Only 26 right now, steadily improving each year (OPS+ 54>>87>>105>>125), lots of experience playing LF/RF/1B. He has the most present value of all the players mentioned, until Casas/Mayer/Yoshida prove they can stay healthy.
Actually I’m kinda surprised Breslow bashed Mayer in the above article, pointing out he’s not strong enough to withstand a full season.
Fever, I cant buy that. *EVERYONE*, even us fans, knew at the time Yoshida was slow in the outfield with a weak arm.
If anyone looked back at the commentary when yoshida was first posted, then signed, those concerns were very publicly aired.
GaSox – When Yoshida was posted, he was not projected to be as bad as he’s been in the field. Bloom thought he was Manny-bad and therefore could be adequate in LF.
Look I’m not defending Bloom in any way here, but to say everyone on the planet but him was aware Yoshida can’t play OF would be disingenuous.
Here’s the NPB Free Agent Scouting Report from 3 years ago:
“As a left fielder, teams could look for a way to maximize his abilities defensively.
In the range and positioning component of DRS he has rated above-average on “shallow” plays in each year, while scoring negatively on “deep” plays in each year. If a team wants to use him in the outfield, they could dig deeper to determine how to optimally position him in left field in hopes of masking his deficiencies.”
Don’t see the sox giving up Mayer for 2 declining players, another lefty outfielder and no pitcher. They need another outfielder like a hole in the head
Who besides Arenado is declining?
Burleson plays outfield and 1b. And Cintreras could be the backup catcher.
I’d probably do this deal if I were the cards. Yoshida is hard to move but the money works in this deal for them pending what you mean by cash.
I actually think the Red Sox wouldn’t do this deal. Mainly because Arenado doesn’t look like he is a starter.
So basically Mayer for Burleson? Easy pass for Boston.
Didn’t Boston once trade an entire sports franchise to Buffalo and vice versa or is that a fever dream? Swinging 70s like the Yankee pitchers
Easy no for Red Sox.
– Arenado’s contact is way underwater and he may not be a starting caliber player anymore.
– Contreras would be a good fit, but he’s not super valuable on his contract and it’s questionable if he will waive his no trade clause
– Burleson makes no sense as the Red Sox have too many outfielders/DHs already. If he’s at 1B, then where does Contreras play?
– Mayer is WAY too good to be in this deal – he was a top-10 prospect who looked pretty good in the majors as a rookie and has 6 years of cheap control remaining
– Casas has been a better hitter (119 to 107 career wRC+) than Burleson while playing a position the Red Sox need… If he can ever stay healthy
– Yoshida is an above average hitter (109 wRC+) with a rough contract, but I’d take his age 32-33 seasons over Arenado’s age 35-36 seasons – even before looking at the contracts.
Nobody on the planet would take Yoshida over Arenado right now. Arenado plays defense and does it well. Yoshida has no position.
Casas is coming off a bad year hes not as valuable as Burleson. Not even close. Again what are you talking about?
No team in baseball would take Arenado over Yoshida. He was healthy for most of last season and couldn’t get to 1 fWAR – unless he bounces back at the age of 35 he’s a backup infielder at this point. Cardinals struggled to trade him last off-season after a solid 2024 campaign – this time will be much tougher.
Yoshida was dealing with an injured shoulder and rehab the last two years which is why he missed time and couldn’t field, but unlike Arenado he can still hit (he was easily the Red Sox best hitter in the playoffs). He’s 3 years younger and owed 6mil less over the next two seasons.
Nobody wants either of them at those contracts, but Arenado’s situation is clearly worse given age and cost.
Casas missed most of the season due to injury and you’re the only one arguing over value. Casas has been the better hitter over their short careers but his stock is clearly down from where it was.
There’s absolutely a trade to be made here as both Contreras and Gray would fill needs for the Red Sox. But your trade makes no sense – you need to consider it from both sides. Saying ‘player X is way more valuable than player Y’ while trying to trade player X for player Y will always come off as disingenuous.
The reds and Sox could line up on something
Duran for Lodolo?
I think the big stumbling block will be the Reds prefer to move Singer and the Sox prefer a starter with more than one year of control for any of their controlled outfielders.
Brady Singer for Duran?
Not a chance.
Be a done deal if they included Carter Jensen though
That would be neat trick since Brady Singer is on Cincinnati and Carter Jensen is on the Royals. I do think there is a potential trade with the Royals but it’s going to cost a good pitcher to get three years of Duran.
lol whoops! Royals really make sense for Duran though. I don’t know if they’d part with Jensen but he fits Boston needs. They have a number of pitchers who are very intriguing as well. They have 2 other catchers that are legitimate prospects in KC but they’re a couple years away.
@Baltimore if the Royals want Duran or would have to be party of a package for Ragans.
I’m sure the Red Sox would be interested in Bubic as well but with only 1 year of control and a spotty history, he’s not nearly enough for Duran.
If Boston wants to move Duran they’re not exactly going to have their pickings of TOR starters around the league. Duran is a player a team would acquire who is trying to win now or at least next season. Most of those teams won’t be parting with TOR arms.
If the Royals would give up Bubic and Jensen—I’d probably have to think long and hard about that.
@Baltimore I would be content with that return. I had been thinking about a similar trade with Morejon and Salas from the Padres for Duran. Although I’m doubtful that Bubic would satiate the masses, so another SP acquisition would likely have to come in conjunction.
One advantage the Red Sox have in these discussions is their great SP depth – not only can they trade from it but they can use it to replace an acquired pitcher after 1-2 years.
Line something up. More like lining the litter box before they dump, amirite?
The problem is the Sox need a Pete Alonso or Kyle Schwarber on offense and a Ranger Suarez or Framber Valdez on pitching but will probably settle for a Ty France and a Martin Perez…
Rsox – I dunno, between the Devers salary dump and Bregman possibly leaving that’s a lot of money available to spend on a slugger. I think they sign someone big.
The SP will probably be via trade though. I’m really not keen on Valdez or Cease anyway.
FPG
Not one mention of Josh Naylor??? Am I the only one that likes this guy .. I know he’s left-handed but he can hit ,has some power (31 jacks ,2 seasons ago), plays a position of need ,and can even swipe a couple of bases. Doesn’t strikeout much and is much cheaper. The money you save here could be used on pitching..
Fpg– are you with me ?? Lol
cdc – Naylor was mentioned in the article, not sure what you mean?
I’ve been with you on Naylor ever since you first mentioned him! The fact he’s a lefty is irrelevant to me, he’d be a good fit.
I have Naylor as my pick to go to Boston.
FPG
Yeah, I missed that, the whole paragraph. Probably trying to skip some ads or me just not being sharp … Anyways,.. he would be a good fit.
Hopefully Breslow can lay down some good plans at the GM meetings. The Sox historically have acquired there top of the rotation pitching through trades. Who was the last big time pitcher they signed in free agency??
cdc – The last big time free agent pitcher the Red Sox signed was Bill Campbell.
Don’t you find it interesting, the people here who have insisted Breslow won’t reveal any plans because he doesn’t want to tip his hand …. and here he is, revealing his free agency plans. LOL
Was David Price not big time enough?
FPG
How about John Lackey….
Tip his hand… Everyone knows what the Sox need. Maybe he will take a page from the Dombrowski book,,tell you then go out and do it..
B44
Very good… How could I forget that contract. I couldn’t stand watching him pitch , but he did help us win the WS.
Yeah. Mega deals to free agent pitchers bust a whole lot but Price was definitely a swing at the fences.
Balt – I was against the Price signing because he was a headcase, so I’m not the one to ask. LOL
cdc – I was a Lackey supporter more than most, but when they signed him he was coming off a 3.83 ERA 1.9 WAR season. which is not Big Time.
Just like Giolito, Lackey had an existing injury …. except the Sox had an inkling, which is why they worked that great injury clause into his contract.
cdc – If that’s your criteria for big time free agent signing, then how can you not mention Dice K?
Watching him pitch was painful as all he did was try to paint, but he did help them win the WS.
Alonso and Alcantara gives them two A’s.
Eh, I dunno.
Does anyone know of a middle reliever (has to be RH) that the Bo Sox can rely on to work the 6-7 innings ( selling beer) and occasionally close ( the stadium) experience and knowledge of Fenway a must ( concession stands) He’s a FA gentleman… Fact…. Red Sox have not won a championship without him!!! Okay I’m done till he signs or comes and works graveyard shift with me at Jewel…
They have needed a middle of the order bat for several years, nothing new. Starters there are several around and should be attainable.
I think Sandy Alcantara fits… wouldn’t be shocked if the return for him is higher than expected…
I think the Marlins want the full retail price for Alcantara, as in the price if he wasn’t recovering from TJ and had another good season.
That’s too steep for my blood, especially given the track record of the Sox picking up guys who recently had TJ.
But I’d honestly rather go Alcantara with giving up only prospects instead of splurging on Cease/King and having them flame out and costing a ton of money.
Alcantara is also expensive @38.3mil over the next two seasons.
I’d gladly have the Red Sox pay that for a chance he returns to being a TOR pitcher, but Marlins reportedly want a haul as well. No thanks.
Give me Woodruff on a slightly more expensive deal that only costs a draft pick.
Would love Woodruff, but I feel like he goes back to MIL. Speaking of MIL, I saw some rumblings somewhere abkut a potential Peralta trade. I’d be all for that unless they trade away a ton for him as he’s a FA after next season.
Peralta would be fine if they can’t do any better. He’s more of a mid-rotation guy though. The great ERA from last season was mostly luck driven – probably a 3.8-4.0 ERA guy with half his games at Fenway.
“There is just something about a bat in the middle of the lineup that forces another team to game plan against it that has a compounding effect on the rest of the roster,”
Sawx had one of them. They even gave him the largest extension in franchise history…And then traded him.
Made the team worse…but I guess it made the locker-room better. Most baseball minds think talent wins games, not attitude…I guess they’ll find out.
Except the team performed better, and won at a higher rate without him…
I’ll bet they go after Skubal and Alonso
I hope not. No offense to Boston but I don’t like the looks of Early and Tolle who everyone talks about as return pieces for Skubal. If they considered doing it (which I don’t think they will) they would need a huge overpay (think MacLean, Tong, Jett, Baty from NYM) thst allows them to compete now and fills holes. Trading to another contender in the AL would be a tough sell too. Peralta from Mil will cost less to fill Boston’s hole and he is a great pitcher.
If Detroit thinks they are getting those 4 from the Mets then Skubal is going to be a Tiger until at least the deadline.
I really don’t see the Tigers trading Skubal. They are going to want a home run trade for a guy who has one year of control and it’s not going to happen.
I agree 100%.
I don’t see Skunal getting moved unless they’re offered a king’s ransom AND they’re out of contention – both of which I find unlikely.
Peralta is a fine mid-rotation starter, but the Red Sox are looking for something better. His ERA looked good last year only because he was insanely lucky with LOB (85.5%) and BABIP (.243). His peripherals are actually down a bit the past two years.
WC: Agreed about Skubal. It seems like a pretty tall task to find a very good TOR SP that a team is willing to part with without gutting the Red Sox farm system. I doubt Breslow wants to gut the farm system this early in the window of contention. I guess we’ll see if it can be done.
@all Ragans would be my hope but may be a pipedream.
Gray is very available for a minimal return and would be a sizable upgrade over Giolito. If the Red Sox got him and an upgrade in the infield (Contreras?) then I’d be quite happy. Doubtful they could afford both those guys AND Bregman though – substituting would feel like a sideways move.
I seem to recall the Red Sox having both of these things. Then they gave away Chris Sale for salary relief and Rafi Devers for…maybe a modest return.
Agree with both points, but don’t give up on Harrison yet. His fastball is very good (although he’s a bit similar to Tolle atm).
I think Breslow thinks that by being transparent he’s going to gain sympathy with the fans. But saying you need a middle of the order bat, after trading one away for peanuts, isn’t the best look.
Also, if your players are getting injured because of “accumulation of workload,” that’s mostly on the team.
Unless you’re actively trying to win the World Series—and let’s be frank, the Sox didn’t even actively try to reach the postseason—then there’s really no excuse to overuse a guy. Especially a position player. You never know what’s going on with pitchers, but position players are easy to rest.
Sounds like Peralta and Alonso
money…. get it?
The Red Sox need a veteran power hitter like Schwarber more than the Phillies do, if the Phillies brass sets emotion aside. The Phillies could add Tucker, Bellinger and/or Bregman and solve positional issues that keeping Schwarber only accentuates.
I don’t think Brelow is going to do anything major. Mr. Henry is not going to blow by the tax apron and they lack the ability to figure out which prospects to trade vs which ones to keep. Alonso and company are going to cost to much. I would sign Bichett to play second and Arne to play first. We need power yes but I don’t see them spending! I would make a run at
Michael king! Could be wrong! The more on base runners that you have more runs that you score!
We needed a TOR pitcher 2 POBOs ago. Nice of you to join the party, Craig
Taking note they did not say 1B. Or 3B specifically. I think they will aggressive on Valdez or perhaps Ranger Suarez. If they go after Schwarber it will be more likely they can keep Bregman too because boras will drag on too long with Alonso and they can’t miss out on Schwarber waiting to see what Boras will work through.
You know Boras is Bregman’s agent too, right?
And he dragged things out with him last offseason. I’m a Red Sox fan and I’m assuming Bregman is gone.
I feel like the title could have been copied and pasted from 2019 on. Fun fact, Red Sox are still looking for a second baseman. Copy and paste that too. What will happen first, Dustin getting social security or the Red Sox signing a major league starting second baseman who we can bother to try to remember their name?
With that knee, and the new rules for SSDI that look at your ability to perform your recent job, not any job, id say Dustin could probably be collecting already.
He didnt finish college, and was an interdisciplinary studies major at that.
Luckily, he was one heck of a ballplayer and banked plenty of money, up until a dirty player wrecked his knee and career
Breslow has given away Chris Sale and Quinn Priester the last two off-seasons and also gave Liam Hendricks $10 million for 13 innings.
But this report gives me lots of hope!
In a Vacuum for Priester. Milwaukee is the best at getting the most out of young pitchers but he did get Priester for Yorke. Priester is a ground ball specialist and Boston’s defensive strength is definitely their outfield. I don’t think he would’ve been quite as good playing behind Boston’s infield.
Turned that into Marcus Phillips and that slot money helped them grab Eyanson too. That one might not be so bad.
The Priester deal wasn’t nearly as bad as the Sale trade. They paid Sale’s salary to win the Cy Young with Atlanta and got a dud prospect in return.
The shame is they saw something in Priester and developed him only to trade him right before his breakthrough, while they still have guys like Houck and Crawford giving them nothing.
Sale was hurt for 5 straight years before the Red Sox traded him. I was happy to trade him for $10M in salary relief which was the main return, not Grissom. We can evaluate the Priester trade in a few years when we see how all the parts turn out.
Don’t sleep on the ptbnl later in that deal. That guy turned into Holobetz he was quite good last year and can’t wait to see what he looks like this spring. Guy has elite fastball shape that misses barrels and elite command/control. If his fastball velocity ticks up might be the steal of the deal. Really impressed with this guy.
Sounds like he will need to put a lot of $$$ where his mouth is
“Front-Of-The-Rotation Starter, Middle-Of-The-Order Bat” implies Breslow’s plugging holes from losing Bregman./Giolito. So really, no actual progress from last year’s team; why ownership doesn’t have a desire to add and become title contender is more of the same. The level of complacency is blinding.
Giolito was a front of the rotation starter?
Pretty bad one.
I don’t understand how one could complain when their GM said he wants to add a TOR starter and a middle of the order bat. That is quite literally stating that he wants to add the 2 most impactful pieces. Odd.
I think Alonso and Bregman should switch teams.
Sonny Gray. Still good (check the peripherals not the ERA) and wouldnt cost any prospects.
If it doesn’t work out, its only for a year. If it does, the option is fairly priced. Its a chunk of money but has no future millstone risk.
Hicks for Gray would delight me if it’s possible.
Unfortunately most on this forum will disagree because they use bWAR without understanding how it’s calculated.
It is a question if they are going to go big in the trade market or FINALLY spend money.
They could go al ‘Dodgers’ and get Cease and Alonso. This means Mayer is going to be the 2B or 3B depending on what they can get via trade or free agent.
They have Duran, Abreu, Garcia, Tolle, Early and Arias. Casas and Campbell can be dealt but their value is down but they are still cheap
My bet is they are going to try to move Duran, Early and Casas to get one of the needs and go into free agency for the other.
Dear Darragh,
Kyle Schwarber’s time at 1B in Boston was “memorable” mainly because he couldn’t learn the position. He has caught in more MLB games than he’s played 1B. He is not a corner IF option for anybody. He is a DH who can also play LF.
Love, soak
If Casas is healthy then I’m not so sure Alonso is an upgrade. Both are poor fielders and the Red Sox have the DH spot filled. Plus selling low on a young middle-of-the-order bat seems like a bad idea.
Casas 2023-2024: .256/.357/.480
Alonso 2023-2024: .229/.324/.480
Keep in mind Casas will be only 26 next year while Alonso will be 31. Trading Casas because he was previously injured feels like the Sale trade all over.
The Red Sox should take a pass on Giolito and focus on:
Signing Alex Bregman to a 4 year contract at $30 million a year with incentives to earn $2 million extra for the number of games he plays each year (at 120, 130, 140, 150, & 160). That means Bregman can earn an additional $10 million each year if he plays 160 games that year. Add 2 more option years that would be picked up if he plays 140 games (no incentives & no opt outs) in year 4 and year 5. The total guaranteed money would be $120 million with an opportunity to earn up to $220 million. This contract would be a win-win for both sides.
&
Signing Pete Alonso to a similar contract; a 4 year contract at $25 million a year with incentives to earn $2 million extra for the number of games he plays each year (at 120, 130, 140, 150, & 160). That means Alonso can earn an additional $10 million each year if he plays 160 games that year. Add 2 more option years that would be picked up if he plays 140 games (no incentives & no opt outs) in year 4 and year 5. The total guaranteed money would be $100 million with an opportunity to earn up to $190 million. This contract would also be a win-win for both sides.
&
Trading for MacKenzie Gore, Hunter Greene, or both.
Is that wishful thinking?
I think the reason Bregman opted out is I think Boras has sold him he can get him a 5+ year contract at 25 to 30 million per. He turned down 2 for 80. You have to figure the basement offer is 5 and 170. Which means it is an extra 3 years for 90.
He could earn up to $220 million over 6 years in my proposal if he’s healthy.
Players like Bregman in his position are not going to sign incentives-laden contracts because it suppresses guaranteed base AAVs which goes against the MLBPA’s agendas.
Good point
Schwarber or the Japanese DH and Bellinger would work on the position player side.
I think the Red Sox should talk to the Giants about Logan Webb. Of course they’d have to offer up the Password.
Sp[eaking from the ‘6’ in Toronto where we lost Game 7 World Series in heartbreak fashion to Dodgers, table is set to sign free agent Bo Bichette who was having great 2025 regular season before knee sprain early Sept. sidelined him for several weeks.
When he came back to play in World Series, Bichette hit solidly including 3 RBI HR Game 7 off Ohtani. If his knee fully recovered play himm at SS and Story at 2B, latter who many many errors last couple weeks regular season. Or flip flop Story to 2B and Bo 2B which he proved he can play competently in World Series. On days Story needs rest, Bo can slide in to play SS competently.
Also what I saw from Canadian born 1B Bo Naylor with Mariners in ALCS, he’d be great fixture for Red Sox wjose fans will appreciate his tough nosed Canadian attiotude and being able to play through pain very competently rathe than give Casa another chance at 1B. Plus Naylor not blessed with great speed had 30 SB in 2025 and would complement Story’s SB ability he showed in 2025.
Naylor and Bichette there for the monetary taking, Mr. Breslow, so don’t dilly dally and sign those players asap.