New year, unchanged Red Sox.
Even with several significant acquisitions this off-season, especially to strengthen a pitching staff urgently requiring top-tier talent, the Red Sox continue to be the unquestioned Interest Kings of baseball. It’s typically ALL interest without action, but this year, consider it 75% interest.
It seems that the aspect where the Red Sox might yield to simple INTEREST! is in their offense. They still require a genuine daily right-handed power hitter. Opportunities still exist. But will they really, genuinely move past INTEREST! and actually put a Boston uniform on those options? Or will they once more hit us with the classic “We gave it our all!”?
That is yet to be determined. The Red Sox have player availability in their favor, but as usual, we’ll trust they’re going to make a move only when they actually do make it. Here’s what baseball experts are discussing this week…
If the Red Sox are determined to secure right-handed power through free agency, there are few better choices than Pete Alonso. As reported by Bob Nightengale at USA Today, the Red Sox and Blue Jays are among eight teams demonstrating at least some INTEREST! in Alonso’s abilities.
Nightengale remarked that a return to the New York Mets “appears to be the probable result.” Alonso evidently has numerous admirers and can choose the highest offer if he wishes. Could the Mets be that team after spending $765 million to acquire Juan Soto?
More crucially for Boston, will the Red Sox be ready to exceed everyone else’s budget for Alonso? It appears more probable they will stop at the INTEREST! phase.
However, Alonso would certainly fill the power gap for right-handed hitters in Boston. Throughout his career, he has maintained an average of 43 home runs for every 162 games, and it’s highly likely he would hit numerous high-angle drives over the Green Monster. As with everything related to the Red Sox lately, we’ll trust it when we witness it.
Baseball insiders inform MassLive’s Chris Cotillo and Sean McAdam that the Red Sox are considered a “favored spot” for St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado. Nevertheless, Cotillo and McAdam appear to be uncertain about whether the Red Sox actually possess a high degree of INTEREST! in the “easily accessible” Arenado.
Once regarded as one of baseball’s most intimidating hitters and top all-around talents, Arenado is now 33 years old and confronting a swift drop in performance. In 2022, he topped the National League in WAR for position players with a score of 7.7, but in the last two seasons, he has averaged 23 home runs and a 2.7 WAR for every 162 games played. He remains capable of delivering solid defense at third base – his 10.3 runs saved above average placed him third among all players at the position in 2024, according to Fangraphs – yet Arenado is undoubtedly not the same player he was during his peak seasons in Colorado.
With that in mind, Arenado’s hitting could benefit from playing at Fenway Park, where he has hit six home runs and boasts a 1.066 OPS in 13 games throughout his career. Positioning him at third base would enable a shift for Rafael Devers to first base or designated hitter, enhancing the Sox’s performance both offensively and defensively. However, it ultimately depends on the Red Sox’s degree of INTEREST! And what they would need to sacrifice in a trade to acquire him.
Suppose the Red Sox genuinely aimed to trade for Arenado and subsequently shift Devers to first base. That would render Triston Casas dispensable.
According to Cotillo, Casas is “quite available” as of this past Sunday. Casas, 24, finished a season where he only participated in 63 games, yet when he was playing, he hit 13 home runs and recorded an .800 OPS.
His batting is definitely genuine.
The issue with Casas appears to be more about his character, relating to how he is perceived in the clubhouse, by his teammates, and by the organization. He’s certainly a “unique character,” so to say, and maybe the Red Sox have concluded that he isn’t worth the hassle.
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