The Boston Pink Sox will start the following section of their offseason Monday when the MLB winter conferences start in Dallas.
Up to now, aid pitchers Justin Wilson and Aroldis Chapman had been Boston’s most notable additions however loads of time stays. The pursuit of free agent outfielder Juan Soto continues to be red-hot. There’s been no scarcity of names linked to the Pink Sox and the willingness to go all-in turned obvious beneath the management of chief baseball officer Craig Breslow.
“It’s time to ship,” Breslow informed MassLive’s Sean McAdam on Friday. “It looks like what (info) has been made out there publicly is that individuals are selecting up a extra aggressive posture (from us). However then once more, it’s arduous for me to be the particular person answering the query about how others are responding to us.”
Listed here are 4 Pink Sox-related predictions earlier than Monday’s conferences start:
Frontline starter will get added to the rotation
The Pink Sox didn’t snag Blake Snell in free company, however that’s superb.
Story continues under commercial
Corbin Burnes, Max Fried and Japanese standout Roki Sasaki are amongst a handful of arms nonetheless out there in the marketplace — all of which Boston has already been rumored to have curiosity in. It’s arduous to take a watch off the Soto sweepstakes, however including a generational expertise as such isn’t the start or the top of Breslow’s agenda this offseason.
Pitching depth, even past the bullpen, is among the many largest wants for the Pink Sox so addressing its void can be an encouraging step ahead towards 2025.
Boston replaces Danny Jansen
It was a short-lived stint in Boston, however Jansen’s departure to hitch the division-rival Tampa Bay Rays on a one-year deal opens the door for the Pink Sox to discover.
Connor Wong is the present favourite to be Boston’s Opening Day catcher whereas Kyle Teel — the No. 25 prospect in baseball, in keeping with MLB Pipeline — stays the following man up. This leaves a short-term alternative for a backup to separate duties with Wong behind the plate till the Pink Sox give Teel the nod from Triple-A Worcester. It’s not arduous to discover a backup catcher, as this season’s previous commerce deadline demonstrated. Due to this fact, the Pink Sox may simply make it out of subsequent week’s conferences with a brand new backstop.
Story continues under commercial
Pink Sox strike first main commerce of their offseason
This needs to be anticipated at some level, proper? So why not get to dealing in Dallas?
Chicago White Sox pitcher Garrett Crochet and St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado are only a few big-time avenues the Pink Sox may discover. After all, if a Crochet or Arenado swap to Boston had been to go down, the asking value wouldn’t be clearance aisle low-cost. White Sox common supervisor Chris Getz informed Audacy’s “670 The Rating” in November {that a} “place participant” can be the best return for Crochet, which might be interpreted in multiple means.
Regardless, Boston’s choices aren’t restricted to free company solely.
Boston indicators an outfielder — even when it’s not Soto
After all, the largest offseason storyline connected to the Pink Sox is the race for Soto.
Story continues under commercial
Boston, together with the New York Yankees, New York Mets, Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Dodgers, dove proper into the center of the Soto sweepstakes. Rumors advised gives reached the $700 million mark with Soto but to determine, leaving all of Fenway Park’s trustworthy going to sleep dreaming of watching the 26-year-old carry out his batter’s field shuffle in Boston for 81 video games subsequent season.
However… if that doesn’t occur there’s no cause to panic.
Teoscar Hernández, an on-the-record fan of Fenway Park, and Anthony Santander, an American League East terror within the batter’s field, are among the many finest choices out there on the second-tier of outfield free brokers this offseason. They’d each provide a dependable glove and energy on the plate — Hernández (33) and Santander (44) each recorded profession highs in residence runs in 2024 — to supervisor Alex Cora’s lineup whereas giving the entrance workplace flexibility to spend elsewhere to complement the remainder of the roster.
Not a nasty different, in any respect — if crucial.
Story continues under commercial
