Reports are that Craig Breslow is in serious pursuit of the slugger.
If you’re still scarred by the past six years of FSG’s cost-cutting, if you still wake up in night sweats after yet another bad dream in which you find yourself constantly pulling a throttle that won’t budge no matter how much muscle you put into it, then I understand if you want to dismiss this report out of hand. After all, no one wants to get hurt and keeping expectations low is one hell of a defense mechanism. But nevertheless, one of baseball’s most connected journalists is reporting that not only are the Red Sox flying across the country to meet with free agent Juan Soto, but that Soto is at “the top of [the team’s] want list.” As of now, Soto has confirmed meetings with just four teams: the Sox, Yankees, Mets, and Blue Jays. (Jeff Passan, ESPN)
A bidding war for Soto would certainly add some juice to the recently listless Red Sox-Yankees rivalry. Even Pedro Martinez misses the old days. (Tim Crowley, NESN)
Is FSG really going to offer the ~$600 million contract it might take to sign Soto? Who knows, but they’ll have a little extra cash lying around if Nick Pivetta declines the qualifying offer, as he is now rumored to do. (Chris Cotillo, MassLive)
And there are plenty of agents, at least, who believe the Red Sox will once again enter the realm of teams who are actively trying to win this offseason. (Peter Abraham, Boston Globe)
But what about spending some of that cash on extensions for some of their own young players? According to sources, the Sox have made no moves to extend Jarren Duran, and while they have engaged in negotiations with Triston Casas in the past, no deal is expected this winter. (Chris Cotillo, MassLive)