Red Sox 2025 Season Review/Offseason Preview Thread

[Larry Cook]

Signing options for Tucker?  Maybe the Dodgers? 
signing options for bellinger? Maybe the Yankees? 
signing options for bichete? Maybe the Red Sox? Or Detroit? 
signing options for Bregman? Maybe the Red Sox? Or the Cubs? Or Detroit? 
 

framber, gallen and king still available! 
 

Next two months should be intriguing!!!! 

[UtahSox]

11 minutes ago, Larry Cook said:

Signing options for Tucker?  Maybe the Dodgers? 
signing options for bellinger? Maybe the Yankees? 
signing options for bichete? Maybe the Red Sox? Or Detroit? 
signing options for Bregman? Maybe the Red Sox? Or the Cubs? Or Detroit? 
 

framber, gallen and king still available! 
 

Next two months should be intriguing!!!! 

I kinda agree. Once I got over the shock of us not putting a competitive bid in front of Pete. I sure hope we don’t get FA pitcher, and then try to upgrade bats via trade, or even worse via “farm system”. 

I’d alter/ add to your options though, based on my reading there are more buyers out there. 

Signing options for Tucker?  Maybe the Dodgers, Yankees, Mets, Bluejays
signing options for bellinger? Maybe the Yankees, Mets, Bluejays, Dodgers
signing options for Bichette? Maybe the Red Sox, Detroit, Mets, Yankees, Mariners, Cubs?
signing options for Bregman? I believe AB2 waits to see what Bichette does now and takes a look at same teams + Phillies (they could sign and trade Bohm?)

[JoeBrady]

1 hour ago, UtahSox said:

Working under the assumption that we whiff on AB2…… would Brendon Donavan, Contreras and like a 2/50 for Geno Suarez work? Are we better offensively than 2025? What other moves would you prefer if AB2 is off the table? 

• Not crazy about the fact that Donovan is a lefty.
• Contreras would depend on Casas' health.
• Not a big fan of Suarez.  He makes sense for Seattle, but they are apparently not interested.  That makes me suspicious.  And his .647 in his final 225 ABs was a tiny bit worrisome.

[JoeBrady]

1 hour ago, Larry Cook said:

Signing options for Tucker?  Maybe the Dodgers? 
signing options for bellinger? Maybe the Yankees? 
signing options for bichete? Maybe the Red Sox? Or Detroit? 
signing options for Bregman? Maybe the Red Sox? Or the Cubs? Or Detroit? 
 

framber, gallen and king still available! 

• Tucker to the Mets.
• Bellinger to the NYY.
• Bichette I still have for the BJs even though they'd fly past the $304M barrier.
• Bregman to Detroit, but absolutely no conviction.

The three SPs I'd pass on.  I still like Ranger Suarez.

[Randy Red Sox]

2 hours ago, Larry Cook said:

Signing options for Tucker?  Maybe the Dodgers? 
signing options for bellinger? Maybe the Yankees? 
signing options for bichete? Maybe the Red Sox? Or Detroit? 
signing options for Bregman? Maybe the Red Sox? Or the Cubs? Or Detroit? 
 

framber, gallen and king still available! 
 

Next two months should be intriguing!!!! 

well the last 2 months certainly have not been

[moonslav59]

7 hours ago, JoeBrady said:

Signing the #2 free agent would be ugly?

Yes- bigtime.

Even if I talked myself into the idea that Bichette will hit over .800 and hit 25+ HRs, he'd fall way short of what we need.

Did you miss the part about being "THE ONLY GUY WE SIGN?"

You honestly think we'd be all set with Bichette and nothing more for opening day?

1. L Anthony LF

2. R Bichette 2B

3. L Duran DH

4. R Story SS

5. L Abreu RF

6. L Casas 1B

7. L Mayer 3B/ R Romy 3B

8. R Narvaez C

9. R Rafaela CF

SP: Crochet, Gray, Bello, Sandoval, Crawford/Dobbins/Harrison/Tolle/Early

RP: Chapman, Whitlock, Slaten, Weissert, Hicks, Kelly, Watson, converted SP

We'd need near perfect health to maybe be close to equal to last year's team and results.

 

[JoeBrady]

22 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

You honestly think we'd be all set with Bichette and nothing more for opening day?

According to FG, that's an OPS of .755.  That's ten points higher than last year.  I can't make you accept the numbers.  I can only tell you what they are.  Past that, adding the #2 FA and a guy like Gray, and thinking that is 'ugly', is why RS are the most entitled in BB.

[moonslav59]

4 minutes ago, JoeBrady said:

According to FG, that's an OPS of .755.  That's ten points higher than last year.  I can't make you accept the numbers.  I can only tell you what they are.  Past that, adding the #2 FA and a guy like Gray, and thinking that is 'ugly', is why RS are the most entitled in BB.

Be serious. This is not about entitlement.

We lost Gio, Wilson, Bernardino and some bad pitchers and added Gray and Oviedo. You laughed when I said maybe call that even. Let's see,

Adding nobody more but Bichette means we lost over 1100 PAs from Bregman .821, Devers .905, Refsnyder .838 and N Lowe .790. Okay, we lost a few PAs from some bad result players, but we lost way more plus OPS PAs than minus ones- way more. (Like 1150 to 30.)

Bichette hit .840 in 2025, .755 from '24-'25 and .778 since 2023. Sure, that's a big plus over our 2Bmen of '25, but with that logic, just playing Romy (.826)  FT would fix 2B.

I see the 2026 as one of our peak window seasons. This is the time to spend- maybe to the second tax line. If our budget is as tight as many think it is, I do not see paying Gray $21M as the best way to go. I like his addition, but I'm not sure he does much better than Gio did in '25. Projected fWAR is nice, as is FIP and some other metrics that show he did very well, last year, but the guy is old and did not do well with ERA+ and ERA- or OPS Against. (This is not reaching  for stats to bring the guy down, those are the stats I trust the most with all pitchers.)

Calling my position entitlement is a big stretch. I could select some choice words for fans buying into the sham and thinking Bichette, Gray and Oviedo is all we needed to help us get better than we were in 2025. It's not entitlement to push for improvement, not even close.

 

[Duran Is The Man]

1 hour ago, JoeBrady said:

According to FG, that's an OPS of .755.  That's ten points higher than last year.  I can't make you accept the numbers.  I can only tell you what they are.  Past that, adding the #2 FA and a guy like Gray, and thinking that is 'ugly', is why RS are the most entitled in BB.

it's not entitlement to want your team to do all they can to win.

[moonslav59]

3 minutes ago, Duran Is The Man said:

it's not entitlement to want your team to do all they can to win.

Plus, I don't see Bichette as the second best FA on the market, even if he could fill a big need at 2B. I'd go...

1. Tucker

2. Schwarber

3. Alonso

4. Bregman

5-7. Cease, Valdez, R Suarez

8-10. Murakami, Bichette, Imai

[moonslav59]

5 hours ago, JoeBrady said:

 

The three SPs I'd pass on.  I still like Ranger Suarez.

I agree. I'd rather have Suarez than those three- maybe even Imai.

King is a big Q mark, but maybe better than Valdez.

No way on Gallen.

[oldtimer]

2 hours ago, moonslav59 said:

Be serious. This is not about entitlement.

We lost Gio, Wilson, Bernardino and some bad pitchers and added Gray and Oviedo. You laughed when I said maybe call that even. Let's see,

Adding nobody more but Bichette means we lost over 1100 PAs from Bregman .821, Devers .905, Refsnyder .838 and N Lowe .790. Okay, we lost a few PAs from some bad result players, but we lost way more plus OPS PAs than minus ones- way more. (Like 1150 to 30.)

Bichette hit .840 in 2025, .755 from '24-'25 and .778 since 2023. Sure, that's a big plus over our 2Bmen of '25, but with that logic, just playing Romy (.826)  FT would fix 2B.

I see the 2026 as one of our peak window seasons. This is the time to spend- maybe to the second tax line. If our budget is as tight as many think it is, I do not see paying Gray $21M as the best way to go. I like his addition, but I'm not sure he does much better than Gio did in '25. Projected fWAR is nice, as is FIP and some other metrics that show he did very well, last year, but the guy is old and did not do well with ERA+ and ERA- or OPS Against. (This is not reaching  for stats to bring the guy down, those are the stats I trust the most with all pitchers.)

Calling my position entitlement is a big stretch. I could select some choice words for fans buying into the sham and thinking Bichette, Gray and Oviedo is all we needed to help us get better than we were in 2025. It's not entitlement to push for improvement, not even close.

 

I am disappointed with the lack of results achieved by Breslow for what ever reason.  There have been endless discussion and rumors but the results are minimal. We needed a #2 starter and at least one power bat and someone solid to play 2nd base. As far as I can see none of those needs have been fulfilled. I agree that 2026 should have been a peak year for the Sox but opportunitites have been missed. The fault probably lies with Henry.

[JoeBrady]

46 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

I don't see Bichette as the second best FA on the market, even if he could fill a big need at 2B. I'd go...

That's what part of this is.  "In your opinion".  Same as with many other posters.  If JH spends, but doesn't sign the players that a given poster prefers, that poster will call JH 'cheap'.  There are at least two posters that want 35-HR hitters.  I want a good #2/future #1.  Just for fun, is there a payroll number that posters will be happy with?

Could we say anything north of $260M is a good number, regardless of how it is spent?

[Duran Is The Man]

21 minutes ago, oldtimer said:

I am disappointed with the lack of results achieved by Breslow for what ever reason.  There have been endless discussion and rumors but the results are minimal. We needed a #2 starter and at least one power bat and someone solid to play 2nd base. As far as I can see none of those needs have been fulfilled. I agree that 2026 should have been a peak year for the Sox but opportunitites have been missed. The fault probably lies with Henry.

the thing about is they know they need some power in the middle of the lineup and they tell everybody they're looking for players to fill their needs and then fail in every case to make a competitive offer. they're just not being serious players in the FA market. why even bother if you're not going to be serious? it just makes them look cheap, greedy, incompetent and disingenous.

[UtahSox]

4 hours ago, JoeBrady said:

According to FG, that's an OPS of .755.  That's ten points higher than last year.  I can't make you accept the numbers.  I can only tell you what they are.  Past that, adding the #2 FA and a guy like Gray, and thinking that is 'ugly', is why RS are the most entitled in BB.

Now do FG if we had Alonso and Bregman. Or Marte AND Bregman. 

[JoeBrady]

15 minutes ago, UtahSox said:

Now do FG if we had Alonso and Bregman. Or Marte AND Bregman. 

I did it for Bichette.  With Marte & Bregman, the OPS would be .770.  If we didn't add a 2B, and added Alonso & Bregman, it would be only .763.  Upgrading 2B probably provides the single largest possible OPS upgrade.  Just for background purposes, our three weakest sOPS+:

• 1B 84 (presumably rectified by Casas)
• Catcher 87
• 2B 97

These are NOT park-adjusted, but all other positions we are above 100.  SS is our lowest above-grade with a 103, but that doesn't count Story's remarkable 30/1 SB/CS.  All other positions were 115 or higher.

[moonslav59]

13 hours ago, JoeBrady said:

That's what part of this is.  "In your opinion".  Same as with many other posters.  If JH spends, but doesn't sign the players that a given poster prefers, that poster will call JH 'cheap'.  There are at least two posters that want 35-HR hitters.  I want a good #2/future #1.  Just for fun, is there a payroll number that posters will be happy with?

Could we say anything north of $260M is a good number, regardless of how it is spent?

Of course this is about opinions on players, but also the amount of spending.

IMO, we spent enough, last winter, and I've said that many times. I viewed last winter as a possible sign the trend was changing or "the cycle" of upward spending had begun, but then we traded Devers and basically undid those signs. The oprouts given to Gio and Bregman added more pressure to either continue the trend or cycle or not.

I've pointed out the much higher AAVs given to Bregman and Buehler. Breggie worked out, but not Buehler. That's on Brez not JH.

I see the Gray trade and cost as cancelling out the Gio loss- money and maybe productionwise. 

I'm not confident we replace Devers, Bregman, Ref & Lowe in kind, and when I hear a poster saying I'm entitled when I expect more than just Gray and maybe Bichette, I'm gonna counter by saying that is simply and categorically false.

Is $260M enough? At this point, that doesnt even pay for Bichette, unless we dump some other salary, so I'm not sure why and how you came up with that number.

[moonslav59]

11 hours ago, JoeBrady said:

I did it for Bichette.  With Marte & Bregman, the OPS would be .770.  If we didn't add a 2B, and added Alonso & Bregman, it would be only .763.  Upgrading 2B probably provides the single largest possible OPS upgrade.  Just for background purposes, our three weakest sOPS+:

• 1B 84 (presumably rectified by Casas)
• Catcher 87
• 2B 97

These are NOT park-adjusted, but all other positions we are above 100.  SS is our lowest above-grade with a 103, but that doesn't count Story's remarkable 30/1 SB/CS.  All other positions were 115 or higher.

I'm a Casas supporter, but I feel it's a big presumption that he will fix the 1B offensive numbers. I think Brez & Co are making that choice.

YES! Fix 2B. I'd love to get Marte. My own personal choice is to pass on a large and long deal with Bichette. We haven't had a L & L deal for a FA in a long time. He would not be my choice, but assuming he's okay playing 2B, it would be a big help. My fear is that his contract will restrict our spending for too many years to come. My other fear is that we would be just flipping the big need from 2B to 3B by signing Bichette and not Bragman or Suarez. Either way, Mayer will be expected to fill the "other" need, and coupling that expectation with the Casas one is just too much to ask, in my view.

IMO, we needed and still need two big bats to replace Bregman, Devers, Ref and Lowe. That's over 1150 PAs lost. Bichette, alone, might knock that down to 500. The great hope would come down to Mayer, Casas and then some more PAs from Anthony, along with assuming very minimal injuries to key batter. It also assumes we don't lose Duran/Abreu's bat, and we DH Duran and sit the $18M DH who should be able to hit .775ish (about what Duran might hit.)

IMO, Gray did not fill the need for a solid #2 SP, but he might be good enough.

We need two power bats, and have watched the best two go elsewhere. Bregman or Bichette would be a move that just barely keeps us even with the 2025 season that was not great to begin with. Counting on players returning from injury and prospects to shine has been our plan for many years, now. Forgive me for not wanting that same plan continued at a point in this team's development that is screaming for throwing the window wide open with just 2 key & significant moves to be made.

Not one.

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

38 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

at a point in this team's development that is screaming for throwing the window wide open with just 2 key & significant moves to be made.

Not one.

The Red Sox already have an ace pitcher and a young star -- and you want them to add two All-Star offensive players. How greedy can a fan be?

What do you think this is: the turn of the century when Boston had Pedro and Nomar, and SIGNED Manny and Damon.

How did that work out for them? They finished in 2nd place eight straight seasons...

p.s. pretty sure the club was under different ownership then, for those afraid of change

[moonslav59]

32 minutes ago, 5GoldGlovesOF,75 said:

The Red Sox already have an ace pitcher and a young star -- and you want them to add two All-Star offensive players. How greedy can a fan be?

What do you think this is: the turn of the century when Boston had Pedro and Nomar, and SIGNED Manny and Damon.

How did that work out for them? They finished in 2nd place eight straight seasons...

p.s. pretty sure the club was under different ownership then, for those afraid of change

I guess I'm a greedy and entitled brat.

To me, one major addition might get us back to even with 2025, which was not a highly competitive team. If we do just one big add, I'll think we have a shot- maybe a long one or one pinned on the hopes for next to no injuries and or major jumps by our younger players, but a hope nonetheless.

We need two to be a top 3-5 contender. Does anybody think we would be a top 5 team with just a Bregman or Bichette signing before opening day?

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

16 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

We need two to be a top 3-5 contender. Does anybody think we would be a top 5 team with just a Bregman or Bichette signing before opening day?

I do -- in the AL East.

[JoeBrady]

1 hour ago, moonslav59 said:

Is $260M enough? At this point, that doesnt even pay for Bichette, unless we dump some other salary, so I'm not sure why and how you came up with that number.

Just a random number to lock posters in.  My theory here is that some posters aren't concerned as much about the number as they are about the RS not signing their favorite players.  So, if the number is $260M, 4% higher than last year, the posters can't complain that they signed a good glove like Kim + a good fit like Okamoto.

[JoeBrady]

1 hour ago, moonslav59 said:

My other fear is that we would be just flipping the big need from 2B to 3B by signing Bichette and not Bragman or Suarez.

That's something some posters fail to acknowledge.  We won't get everyone on their wish list.  It's a 0-sum game.  What we would've spent on Alonso is money we cannot spend elsewhere.  And then when we don't wind up signing Alonso, Bichette, and Bregman, it will be because JH is evil.

[JoeBrady]

24 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

Does anybody think we would be a top 5 team with just a Bregman or Bichette signing before opening day?

If we did that, and add the #2 in a trade, I'd bet that we are the AL favorite, but approximately tied with TO and NY..

[drewski6]

17 hours ago, JoeBrady said:

According to FG, that's an OPS of .755.  That's ten points higher than last year.  I can't make you accept the numbers.  I can only tell you what they are.  Past that, adding the #2 FA and a guy like Gray, and thinking that is 'ugly', is why RS are the most entitled in BB.

Whats ugly is this lack of respect for a better red sox fan than you are.

First of all, if you are going to imply Moon is entitled, or his line of thinking is entitled, say it plainly, dont beat around the bush with passive/aggressive twerpy comments.

Secondly, are you aware that since 2018, the Red sox have 2x'd in value?  This is only since 2018, since theyve taken the foot off the gas. If we go back to JH's purchase he is up 20-40x on his investment, and hes been able to sell off small chunks here and there to build an empire.  He co-owns something with Lebron, he has a soccer club, he has one of the most prestigious NHL franchises.

While the RS have 2x'd in value (2B - > 4b) since 2018, our payroll is consistent (down if you account for inflation).  They have clearly taken their foot off the gas, and here you are - talking down to long time fans who live/breathe Red Sox.  Talk about carrying water for ownership.

And to make matters worse, you are willing to lie and spin in order to continue this weird desire you have to come here and defend ownership ignoring that they have built a giant empire (largely with our help).  Like how you sometimes use the luxury tax hit to defend their payroll and sometimes you use the cash outlay (whichever is convenient).  Roman Anthony is going to cost them 7mil this year, not the 16 you love to credit.  Yes I know thats the tax hit, but thats just the red sox purchasing discounted years in the future and smoothing out the tax hit.  There are ways to stretch the tax, minimize the hit for certain players, and be able to fit more under the second threshold, something they are unwilling to do.  Instead, its the opposite , a series of short term deals for third and fourth tier players, with high AAV because of the lack of years, which chew the cap right up. Then you are like they spend to the threshholds, but we see how they are doing it, and yes how matters.

You continue to overlook the cyclical nature of roster building and the necessity to stack talent.  They could have left the youngsters cheap, creating room underneath the tax and went shopping while still managing to the tax threshold but instead, they just reworked deals for players they already controlled, so the tax hit would appear higher for this year.  This is not how greedy teams operate.  They fit all the talent onto their team they can.  And those teams that operate like that, the ones trying to get as much talent as possible, are going to continue to get the better of us more times than not.

You clearly did not read the article I posted about how just maximizing value does not win championships, and there comes a time when a team has to change gears and shift focus from long-term value to a willingness to overpay to supplement.  This is how championship rosters are most often built. A mix of guys in their primes, guys a little past their primes, and youngsters. A mix of guys making big money, and guys making small money.

What I dont understand is how some of you do not see the relationship between what we've been doing and the results we've been getting.  One playoff win (game, not a series).  Multiple third and fifth place divisional finishes. EVer since they took the foot off the gas.  Ever since they decided they have done enough for us and would be operating going forward on a disadvantaged basis.

Yes, when you overpay on a 1 year deal from an AAV point-of-view because you are unwilling to commit years, you can turn around and say :"look we spent" look we're at the tax.  But its not going to fool us.  We see the consistent overpay AAV short term deals for one and doens because they refuse to be players for the elite talent. They refuse to be players for the top 30 contracts in baseball (total dollars standpoint).

Another words, we see through the charade. The deception. The false hope.  The management speak. All reflected in the article I posted.  The Red Sox are not trying to build the best baseball team they can.  Its not like they are trying to do everything thats reasonable, but unwilling to go unreasonable.  22nd in reinvested revenue.  Alonso did NOT get an unreasonable contract.

And I am honestly not sure if you are just gullible or thinking you can come here, regurgitate the company line (which we've all heard before), and make implications that we're unreasonable/greedy/entitled - but there is one thing that you need to understand.  They (billionaires) are not going to find you, pluck you out of the group, and be like "this guy gets it" , they wont ever know your existence, and here you are lying/deceiving your fellow red sox fans on their behalf.  Thinking you're in a club that you arent in, and its sad. I am honestly not sure if you are buying their cool aid, their useful dope, or if you think you can spin ownership's obvious complacency into something else because you think its fun.  The part that concerns me the most is that you are sitting there Im sure, thinking you are making great points and winning debates, and let me assure - you are not.  You are the weirdo in the offense cheering when they corporate announces no bonuses hoping that the CEO will give you a nice little pat on the head for carrying his water (he wont).

[drewski6]

18 hours ago, moonslav59 said:

Be serious. This is not about entitlement.

We lost Gio, Wilson, Bernardino and some bad pitchers and added Gray and Oviedo. You laughed when I said maybe call that even. Let's see,

Adding nobody more but Bichette means we lost over 1100 PAs from Bregman .821, Devers .905, Refsnyder .838 and N Lowe .790. Okay, we lost a few PAs from some bad result players, but we lost way more plus OPS PAs than minus ones- way more. (Like 1150 to 30.)

Bichette hit .840 in 2025, .755 from '24-'25 and .778 since 2023. Sure, that's a big plus over our 2Bmen of '25, but with that logic, just playing Romy (.826)  FT would fix 2B.

I see the 2026 as one of our peak window seasons. This is the time to spend- maybe to the second tax line. If our budget is as tight as many think it is, I do not see paying Gray $21M as the best way to go. I like his addition, but I'm not sure he does much better than Gio did in '25. Projected fWAR is nice, as is FIP and some other metrics that show he did very well, last year, but the guy is old and did not do well with ERA+ and ERA- or OPS Against. (This is not reaching  for stats to bring the guy down, those are the stats I trust the most with all pitchers.)

Calling my position entitlement is a big stretch. I could select some choice words for fans buying into the sham and thinking Bichette, Gray and Oviedo is all we needed to help us get better than we were in 2025. It's not entitlement to push for improvement, not even close.

 

We love you Moon

[drewski6]

15 hours ago, Duran Is The Man said:

the thing about is they know they need some power in the middle of the lineup and they tell everybody they're looking for players to fill their needs and then fail in every case to make a competitive offer. they're just not being serious players in the FA market. why even bother if you're not going to be serious? it just makes them look cheap, greedy, incompetent and disingenous.

In fairness, they arent particularly serious players in the trade market for hitters either, haha.

[moonslav59]

17 minutes ago, 5GoldGlovesOF,75 said:

I do -- in the AL East.

maybe top 3 in ALE

[moonslav59]

15 minutes ago, JoeBrady said:

Just a random number to lock posters in.  My theory here is that some posters aren't concerned as much about the number as they are about the RS not signing their favorite players.  So, if the number is $260M, 4% higher than last year, the posters can't complain that they signed a good glove like Kim + a good fit like Okamoto.

I think that’s true, and some won’t be happy no matter what

[drewski6]

17 minutes ago, JoeBrady said:

Just a random number to lock posters in.  My theory here is that some posters aren't concerned as much about the number as they are about the RS not signing their favorite players.  So, if the number is $260M, 4% higher than last year, the posters can't complain that they signed a good glove like Kim + a good fit like Okamoto.

This is a trap and we arent going to fall for it.  We do not care about the series of one -and - dones.

The Red Sox have 0 contracts in the top 35 in baseball.
The Red sox since 2018 have doubled their vlaue (adding 2b) but our payroll is lower when accounting for inflation
Going back further to JH's initial purchase he has 20x'd his net worth and has been able to build an empire with wealth beyond his wildest dreams

We want top players, not front loaded tax, not using the whole budget to extend, not a series of one-and-dones, we want to be aggressive.  When was the last time the red sox signed a top free agent on a mulit-year deal? Even Story, we pounced because other teams werent going big dollars because of the injury risk, but we smelt discount.

Who are the elite players on this team in their prime? I mean core.