A Realistic Look at the 2026 Red Sox: Part I

[FredLynn]

1 hour ago, notin said:

Were Crochet and Bregman bad moves?  Or Narvaez?

That was last year.

What have they done THIS year? Sonny Gray? LOLOLOL

[UtahSox]

34 minutes ago, vjcsmoke said:

 

We missed out on Pete Alonso to an in division rival in the Orioles and his annual pay is slightly less than what Devers was making.

What's the plan here? We know it's not Full Throttle. That was a lie.

Converting Campbell to 1B? Feels dubious since he was a career 2B and his major league career he has hit for an underwhelming .660 OPS albeit in a small sample size. In Pawtucket his OPS was .799 against weaker minor league pitching.

As of today, this team feels half cooked and it wouldn't surprise me with this current roster if we fail to match our .500 record of last season and miss out on the playoffs.

Henry wants us to become the Tampa Rays but it's just not working. It's just way harder to attract free agents to play in a cold weather city like Boston and we don't have the no income tax advantage of the Florida club. The Red Sox can't lowball free agents and expect to sign them.

The Red Sox have been penny-wise and pound foolish for years now. We overpay for injured reclamation projects because news flash insurance pays 70-80% of the salary when they end up on IR. They only end up playing for us for half the duration of their contracts if at all.

Selling off Mookie Betts feels like the second coming of the Curse of Babe Ruth. Until Henry sells off this team it feels like we are doomed to mediocrity.

 

 

The sad part is that I genuinely think, in a true tie, the Red Sox still win out — far more so than a team like the Rays/ Orioles (Pete Alonso). Even with the higher taxes and added scrutiny, you’re talking about the Red Sox legacy, a massive passionate national fanbase, and Fenway Park. That still matters A LOT. 
But the real issue is we aren’t even getting close enough for those advantages to matter. We’re consistently not competitive with the top offers. And it’s telling that nearly every player with a no-trade clause had the Red Sox on their short list of acceptable destinations — players want to be here — yet we’re failing to convert that interest.

I agree that John Henry has been a major net positive for the franchise. Breaking the curse and winning four World Series is an incredible legacy. But every owner — every executive, really every business owner— eventually shifts from “asset/ Legacy acquisition mode” to “asset preservation mode.” That transition feels very real now. Henry built something special, but over time it’s clear his priorities have changed. My concern is that he’s brought in so many outside investors through FSG that his fiduciary responsibilities to protect and preserve value/ cash flow now outweigh the desire to aggressively invest to further cement his legacy in Boston. And that shift to “asset preservation” is showing on the field since 2019. 

[Randy Red Sox]

4 hours ago, moonslav59 said:

If Casas returns to pre-2025 form, he needs no platoon.

Big if, though.

sound like he is not even going to be ready for opening day at this point

[JoeBrady]

3 hours ago, notin said:

 It screams of entitlement.

Red Sox have passed 'entitlement' like it was standing still.  I would guess that even Yankee fans have been astonished at how much more entitled RS fans are than the Yankee fans are.

[Larry Cook]

Palonco and Mays off the board. 
 

bres-slow must feel like a spectator at a nascar race 

[notin]

9 minutes ago, Larry Cook said:

Palonco and Mays off the board. 
 

bres-slow must feel like a spectator at a nascar race 

Did anyone want Dustin May back?

As for Polanco, he wasn’t the answer to what the Sox need.  He was the answer to the question “who fits today?”  Hes a sub-2 WAR infielder with decent offense and weak defense that a year from now, 50% of all trade posts will include the phrase “only if they take back Polanco”.

I think far too many people care more about whether or not Henry spends than the team wins.  They’re stockpiling young starting pitching at ridiculous levels.  I would expect Duran isn’t the only name on the trading block …

[UtahSox]

2 hours ago, JoeBrady said:

Red Sox have passed 'entitlement' like it was standing still.  I would guess that even Yankee fans have been astonished at how much more entitled RS fans are than the Yankee fans are.

iMO
I’d argue this is not entitlement; taking it back to my org Econ class its the definition of aligned incentive theory. Elevated expectations are the consequence of elevated returns, not merely a byproduct of past success. Fans, sponsors, and media partners generate incremental revenue because of ongoing competitive and historical relevance, while ownership captures that upside through brand expansion and monetization. Competitive investment is the mechanism that sustains this cycle. When ownership shifts into “asset preservation mode” while continuing to extract top-tier revenue, incentives become misaligned between ownership and fans — and that divergence, not entitlement, is where frustration emerges.

[Larry Cook]

45 minutes ago, notin said:

Did anyone want Dustin May back?

As for Polanco, he wasn’t the answer to what the Sox need.  He was the answer to the question “who fits today?”  Hes a sub-2 WAR infielder with decent offense and weak defense that a year from now, 50% of all trade posts will include the phrase “only if they take back Polanco”.

I think far too many people care more about whether or not Henry spends than the team wins.  They’re stockpiling young starting pitching at ridiculous levels.  I would expect Duran isn’t the only name on the trading block …

Four teams have not signed a free agent. And we are 1 of the 4! 

[notin]

11 minutes ago, Larry Cook said:

Four teams have not signed a free agent. And we are 1 of the 4! 

If only we had signed Akil Baddoo and stayed off that list!!

Ok so far the Padres have signed Kyle Hart, Daison Acosta, and Tyler Adcock.

Now in free agency they have lost Dylan Cease, Michael King, Luis Arraez, Nestor Cortes, Elias Díaz, and Jose Iglesias.

 

But hey!! They spent money!! That’s all fans want!!

[JoeBrady]

1 hour ago, Larry Cook said:

Mays off the board. 

Mays?

[JoeBrady]

1 hour ago, notin said:

Did anyone want Dustin May back?

As for Polanco, he wasn’t the answer to what the Sox need.

I certainly hope that no one wants May back.  That's delusional.  IRT Polanco, the Mets will start him at DH.  Anyone wanting to pay Polanco $20M to DH is likewise delusional.

[JoeBrady]

31 minutes ago, Larry Cook said:

Four teams have not signed a free agent. And we are 1 of the 4! 

Of the top 50, only 19 have signed, and only 13 teams accounted for the 19 signings.  So by default, you must be including 13 teams that have signed someone not in the top-50.

So are you looking for us to sign one of those #51-100 FAs?

[Duran Is The Man]

13 minutes ago, JoeBrady said:

I certainly hope that no one wants May back.  That's delusional.  IRT Polanco, the Mets will start him at DH.  Anyone wanting to pay Polanco $20M to DH is likewise delusional.

it was equally delusional for the Red Sox to give the Dodgers anything for May, yet they did in what most considered a massive overpay by the Sox.

[JoeBrady]

21 minutes ago, notin said:

Now in free agency they have lost Dylan Cease, Michael King, Luis Arraez, Nestor Cortes, Elias Díaz, and Jose Iglesias.

The NYY have lost Goldschmidt, Bellinger and Devin Williams, and have acquired no one.

Seattle has lost Polanco & Suarez and acquired no one.

I could go on, but it's meaningless at this point.

[moonslav59]

10 hours ago, FredLynn said:

That was last year.

What have they done THIS year? Sonny Gray? LOLOLOL

Ane Oviedo!

LMAO!

[FredLynn]

8 hours ago, JoeBrady said:

Red Sox have passed 'entitlement' like it was standing still.  I would guess that even Yankee fans have been astonished at how much more entitled RS fans are than the Yankee fans are.

I doubt Flops fans feel any more entitled than Yankee fans.

While the Yankees haven’t signed anyone they are getting their ace back. They won the division without him last year. 
Now how did the Flops improve again? Gray?

[notin]

8 hours ago, FredLynn said:

I doubt Flops fans feel any more entitled than Yankee fans.

While the Yankees haven’t signed anyone they are getting their ace back. They won the division without him last year. 
Now how did the Flops improve again? Gray?

So… Youre telling a guy who lives in the Bronx that you know Yankee fans better, and then following it up with a complain by about the Sox not found anything.

Too many “wow” moments here…

[JoeBrady]

8 hours ago, FredLynn said:

I doubt Flops fans feel any more entitled than Yankee fans.

While the Yankees haven’t signed anyone they are getting their ace back. They won the division without him last year. 

1-I listen to WFAN.  The NYY fans that call in are waaay less entitled than RS fans.  Not remotely close.

2-The EE didn't win their division last year.

3-Every team has injuries, and every team gets players back from injury.  We'll be getting Casas, Mayer, Anthony & Abreu back.

[FredLynn]

30 minutes ago, notin said:

So… Youre telling a guy who lives in the Bronx that you know Yankee fans better, and then following it up with a complain by about the Sox not found anything.

Too many “wow” moments here…

That’s exactly what I am telling him 

[FredLynn]

58 minutes ago, JoeBrady said:

1-I listen to WFAN.  The NYY fans that call in are waaay less entitled than RS fans.  Not remotely close.

2-The EE didn't win their division last year.

3-Every team has injuries, and every team gets players back from injury.  We'll be getting Casas, Mayer, Anthony & Abreu back.

They certainly did better than the flops. They tied for first place and only missed out on tiebreakers on first place. And getting Cole back is the same as getting Casas back in your mind? You are trying to tell me that Yankmee fans don’t want to win as much as we do? Laughable.

The Yankmees are starting from a better position than we are. They have over the past several years done better than us because of poor management on our part-and Henry’s cheapskate ways. 

[notin]

20 hours ago, FredLynn said:

That was last year.

What have they done THIS year? Sonny Gray? LOLOLOL

Yeah, why read what people are asking….

[notin]

54 minutes ago, FredLynn said:

They certainly did better than the flops. They tied for first place and only missed out on tiebreakers on first place. And getting Cole back is the same as getting Casas back in your mind? You are trying to tell me that Yankmee fans don’t want to win as much as we do? Laughable.

The Yankmees are starting from a better position than we are. They have over the past several years done better than us because of poor management on our part-and Henry’s cheapskate ways. 

I see no reason to continue throwing darts at Fred; he can dodge any point…

[FredLynn]

3 minutes ago, notin said:

I see no reason to continue throwing darts at Fred; he can dodge any point…

Are you happy with the "improvements" so far with this team? I know the Boston sports writers aren't. 

[JoeBrady]

1 hour ago, FredLynn said:

And getting Cole back is the same as getting Casas back in your mind?

Do these things make sense to you when you re-read it, or do you type and send at the same time?  I'm pretty sure I never equated Cole and Casas no matter what you think you read.

[Bellhorn04]

1 hour ago, JoeBrady said:

1-I listen to WFAN.  The NYY fans that call in are waaay less entitled than RS fans.  Not remotely close.

2-The EE didn't win their division last year.

3-Every team has injuries, and every team gets players back from injury.  We'll be getting Casas, Mayer, Anthony & Abreu back.

I check in on the NYY FANS web site.  I don't know if they're more entitled than us, but the abuse they lay on Cashman and Boone is pretty spectacular. 😄

[FredLynn]

3 minutes ago, JoeBrady said:

Do these things make sense to you when you re-read it, or do you type and send at the same time?  I'm pretty sure I never equated Cole and Casas no matter what you think you read.

The point you obviously missed is that the Yankmees were better than us last year and they are getting their ace back. He was gone all year. We missed some guys for part of the year but no one as consequential as an ace SP. That team is going to be better just by getting Cole back out there every five days. I can't say the same thing about us getting Casas back, if he even returns.

Are you happy with the "improvements" the Flops have made to the team this offseason? I mean getting Sonny Gray will certainly put us in contention for a ring now, right?

[FredLynn]

4 minutes ago, Bellhorn04 said:

I check in on the NYY FANS web site.  I don't know if they're more entitled than us, but the abuse they lay on Cashman and Boone is pretty spectacular. 😄

There's no yardstick for level of "entitlement", so claiming, as Brady does, that Flops fans are more entitled than Yankee fans is just a way of accepting mediocrity. Boston is a big market franchise. Its about time they started to behave like one.

[Larry Cook]

1 minute ago, FredLynn said:

There's no yardstick for level of "entitlement", so claiming, as Brady does, that Flops fans are more entitled than Yankee fans is just a way of accepting mediocrity. Boston is a big market franchise. It’s about time they started to behave like one.

Rumor has it the Yankees lost money last year! 
 

If they lost money, then we lost money for sure!!!! 

[Hugh2]

2 minutes ago, Larry Cook said:

Rumor has it the Yankees lost money last year! 
 

If they lost money, then we lost money for sure!!!! 

Red Sox had 574 million revenue the year before with over $120 in net income.  They were the most profitable organization in the league. 

If they are saying they lost money I'm saying they're effing lying. 

I'll take this as posturing from the owners heading into negotiations in 2027.  

[notin]

34 minutes ago, FredLynn said:

Are you happy with the "improvements" so far with this team? I know the Boston sports writers aren't. 

The sportswriters aren’t?!! Well, That’s an accurate gage.  I mean, it’s not like they’re above writing clickbait articles that are infinitely more successful when they write bad news.

One year ago, we were still roughly 10 weeks away from signing Bregman.  And before they, it was these same posts all over again.  We’ve all seen this before but some of us are not pretending we haven’t.  Offseasons are slow, and they used to be much worse, and not that long ago.    We’ve all seen this, but we still have people complaining for SIX WEEKS RUNNING about the lack of activity, which really means the lack of activities they want.  Can I safely assume you’re also angry at Santa because your stocking is STILL EMPTY?

Schwarber is a very good hitter with no defensive skills whatsoever  Alonso is a one-trick pony.  There are other options for the Sox, especially if folks focus solely on the 35-40 home runs a player might bring while conveniently forgetting about his other 500-530 at bats…