A Realistic Look at the 2026 Red Sox: Part I

[Randy Red Sox]

18 minutes ago, notin said:

No, Devers “me first” attitude cost us Devers.  If he shut up, grabbed a first baseman’s mitt and signed the team “Get Well Soon” card for Casas, he’d still be here.  But instead he went on some whiny rant about having to play EVERY POSITION, when in reality, he was asked to play just one.  What a terrible teammate.

Bregman just allowed us to find out about it faster…

He was not a good teammate there is no doubt. But the team created a lot of the drama on how they treated him and now they don't have either him or Bregman . Before Bregman arrived there were no real noticeable attitude issues with Raffy.

I believe that the Devers situation simply allowed JH to get out from a contract he only agreed to after letting XB get away for nothing as RSN was in an uproar over that.

[Randy Red Sox]

On 12/24/2025 at 10:29 AM, Old Red said:

The Red SOX are waiting for an after Christmas sale. I’m not to confident BorASS will give them one though.

they want a 1 or MAYBE 2 year deal.

[Old Red]

35 minutes ago, Randy Red Sox said:

He was not a good teammate there is no doubt. But the team created a lot of the drama on how they treated him and now they don't have either him or Bregman . Before Bregman arrived there were no real noticeable attitude issues with Raffy.

I believe that the Devers situation simply allowed JH to get out from a contract he only agreed to after letting XB get away for nothing as RSN was in an uproar over that.

Well said, and I agree mostly. As I have recanted before I was NEVER a Devers Forevers guy as one, and others were on here, but I don’t see that Raffy did much of anything wrong at all. The FACTS as we know them Cora NEVER asked Raffy to play 1B, and said he wasn’t going to, and that is the key to me in forming my opinion. There are all kinds of guesses why Cora didn’t ask Raffy to play 1B, and mine has been Cora didn’t think Raffy would have been good at it. I still don’t see how it would have made the Red Sox better by putting a lesser hitter at DH.Some continue to rant, and rave about a bad teammate Raffy was, so that must make Cora a bad manager too for not doing it. Brez caused the whole mess to me, and was mostly to blame for how it turned out IMO.

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

1 hour ago, Duran Is The Man said:

it was stupid. just like the Gio contract. great for the player. sucks for the team. besides the $40 million, his signing cost us Devers.

The Red Sox gave me an opt out to watch them. When they're good I keep NESN on, but when the defense makes errors and the offense strikes out with runners in scoring in position, I can change the channel. 

But there's no refunds.

[moonslav59]

3 hours ago, JoeBrady said:

I find these things useful exercises.  It keeps fans grounded in reality.

It does show the actual potential of this roster as a whole.

There is not much flash, but there is a large quantity of good to very good talent and potential.

[moonslav59]

34 minutes ago, 5GoldGlovesOF,75 said:

But there's no refunds.

If there was, maybe Devers is still here.

[Randy Red Sox]

On 12/24/2025 at 1:53 PM, JoeBrady said:

One of the reasons I don't get too far into the weeds in the off-season.  This is pretty much fantasy BB for us.  We don't have any idea what the FO is looking at.

sometimes other than keeping costs down I am not sure they do either

[moonslav59]

7 minutes ago, Randy Red Sox said:

sometimes other than keeping costs down I am not sure they do either

I think they do, and are actually pretty good at building up a formidable 40 man roster and farm on a restricted budget.

Brez has made some major gambles that did not pay off- most notably the Sale trade and Buehler signing, but he's done a lot of savvy moves. (To me, the Priester deal is still pending.)

I was very bummed, last winter when "all we did" was sign Chapman & Wilson for the pen, yet our pen was a major part of us making the playoffs. The Crochet deal and extension looks to outshine the Sale deal and more so with the extension part. Locking up 4 kids, long term is something we haven't seen much of, and I'm glad we joined that line of thinking.

Brez has almost totally remade the roster and farm in just a couple short years. There are only 13 players on the 40 man roster that were on it, when Bloom left. (Yes, some were in the system, but still- many more of those 27 were added by Brez.)

7 of the top 10 prospects are Brez adds.

11 of the top 20 are, too. I'd put Watson, Delzine, Ramos & Rivas above Cespedes, Bleis and Castro, making my top 21 with 14 Brez prospects.

It's been a stunning turnover without calling it a rebuild.

 

[Behindenemylines]

3 hours ago, notin said:

No, Devers “me first” attitude cost us Devers.  If he shut up, grabbed a first baseman’s mitt and signed the team “Get Well Soon” card for Casas, he’d still be here.  But instead he went on some whiny rant about having to play EVERY POSITION, when in reality, he was asked to play just one.  What a terrible teammate.

Bregman just allowed us to find out about it faster…

Agree! Devers was the only one who saw him as the long term 3B in Boston. He was going to be asked to be 1B or DH eventually. I think what happened in 2025 would eventually happen anyway.

[Randy Red Sox]

2 hours ago, moonslav59 said:

I think they do, and are actually pretty good at building up a formidable 40 man roster and farm on a restricted budget.

Brez has made some major gambles that did not pay off- most notably the Sale trade and Buehler signing, but he's done a lot of savvy moves. (To me, the Priester deal is still pending.)

I was very bummed, last winter when "all we did" was sign Chapman & Wilson for the pen, yet our pen was a major part of us making the playoffs. The Crochet deal and extension looks to outshine the Sale deal and more so with the extension part. Locking up 4 kids, long term is something we haven't seen much of, and I'm glad we joined that line of thinking.

Brez has almost totally remade the roster and farm in just a couple short years. There are only 13 players on the 40 man roster that were on it, when Bloom left. (Yes, some were in the system, but still- many more of those 27 were added by Brez.)

7 of the top 10 prospects are Brez adds.

11 of the top 20 are, too. I'd put Watson, Delzine, Ramos & Rivas above Cespedes, Bleis and Castro, making my top 21 with 14 Brez prospects.

It's been a stunning turnover without calling it a rebuild.

 

NO--the fact of the matter is because JH refuses to allow CB to spend on the FA market he has to trade away quality assets to fill the holes with less costly players than what is in the FA market. Now according to MLBTR it looks like we might trade Bello to St Louis for Donovan to play 2B. This would be insane IMO. 

[JoeBrady]

29 minutes ago, Randy Red Sox said:

NO--the fact of the matter is because JH refuses to allow CB to spend on the FA market he has to trade away quality assets to fill the holes with less costly players than what is in the FA market. Now according to MLBTR it looks like we might trade Bello to St Louis for Donovan to play 2B. This would be insane IMO. 

The article doesn't say we might make that trade, only that we are still talking to StL about Donovan.

IRT to saving money, the difference in salary this year is less than $500k.  That's couch cushion change.

And finally, Bello is #110 out of 127 in K%-BB%.  That's not good.  The IPs he puts up are important, but do you really think that the addition of Donovan would not out-weigh the departure of Bello?  Bello's slot would like be taken by Early of Tolle.

 

[Jean-Sébastien Blouin]

Are the Red Sox really offering Bregman six years with what Anthony revealed?

[moonslav59]

2 hours ago, Randy Red Sox said:

NO--the fact of the matter is because JH refuses to allow CB to spend on the FA market he has to trade away quality assets to fill the holes with less costly players than what is in the FA market. Now according to MLBTR it looks like we might trade Bello to St Louis for Donovan to play 2B. This would be insane IMO. 

No, even when DD had money to spend, he traded away a lot of what was thought to be quality assets.

While I agree JH has tightened the strings, that does not mean Brez does not know what he's doing or what "the plan" is.

The plan is obvious: try to win without any long term deals given to anyone over 29 years old. Spend to near the tax line. Don't trade any top 3 prospects.

You can hate that plan, but it is a clear one.

[moonslav59]

If Casas proves he's back, Masa's days are numbered. (They may be numbered even without Casas, if Campbell, Romy and others prove they are for real, or we don't trade an OF'er by the time the season starts.)

I think we'll trade for Donovan and complete the Cardinal trifecta. Forget the Ray North: we have become the Cards East. He's a LHB with little power, but he gets on base and doesn't K much. I seriously doubt we add Donovan plus a 3Bman and leave Mayer on the farm. Could we add Suarez and Donovan, then trade Mayer and Duran for an ace? (Does CIN take Mayer, Rafaela/Duran and Crawford for Greene?)

I think all of our OF'ers are worth more than Donovan, so maybe we still trade an OF'er for a #2 and something else for Donovan (or Vientos, Paredes or someone nobody has thought of yet.)

[moonslav59]

2 hours ago, Jean-Sébastien Blouin said:

Are the Red Sox really offering Bregman six years with what Anthony revealed?

I'm not sure what Anthony says matters, but the Sox do know how much Bregman helped other players be better and get better.

[vegasbob]

Casas will begin the year on the IL list, or at WooSox to see if he can go on a daily basis.

Yoshida becomes affordable to trade at the July '26 deadline , along with money or even DFA if he's not hitting well.

Narvaez and Wong will be the catching tandem, with Contreras as an emergency  filler

3B is Mayers until he shows he cannot stay on the field 

CF should stay as Rafaela's pasture and  he should not be used as the primary 2Bman.   The only benefit to Cedanne at 2B is that Abreu, Anthony and Duran can be in the lineup  daily.   That may sway AC to play him there.    A trade of one of those OF'ers for  pitching help could also sway that lineup. 

Note that among Casas, Abreu, Anthony, and  Mayer, none have shown yet that they can stay on the field for 150+- games.  Duran and Rafaela have done so. .   Can Trevor Story stay in one productive piece for another season ?   Bregman could not.

What happens with K. Campbell if somehow he repeats his 2025 ST  and looks like a serious player again ? I think it depends a lot on the trade outcomes  among the OF'ers.    My bet now would be on starting at WOOSox awaiting the next lengthy injury rehab.

 

[Jean-Sébastien Blouin]

Not the Sox who offer six years, I read that he was looking for a six-year contract. Will he get it? I don't know. But the Sox, are you going to offer him a better contract than the last one he got with what Anthony said, that he needs to come back because he is a leader?

[JoeBrady]

1 hour ago, Jean-Sébastien Blouin said:

Not the Sox who offer six years, I read that he was looking for a six-year contract. Will he get it? I don't know. But the Sox, are you going to offer him a better contract than the last one he got with what Anthony said, that he needs to come back because he is a leader?

I appreciate the leadership angle, but Bregman might only have two good years left.  I wouldn't pay for four extra years, unless the AAV was low.  $100M/4 dressed up to look like $150M/6.

[JoeBrady]

2 hours ago, moonslav59 said:

He's a LHB with little power, but he gets on base and doesn't K much.

We are borderline desperate for OBP.  I'm not a fan, mostly because he is lefty, but Donovan has a career OBP of .361.  Our OBP's include .306, .308, .332, .295 and .317.  Anthony has a .396, but that includes a BABIP of .404.  

[moonslav59]

23 minutes ago, JoeBrady said:

We are borderline desperate for OBP.  I'm not a fan, mostly because he is lefty, but Donovan has a career OBP of .361.  Our OBP's include .306, .308, .332, .295 and .317.  Anthony has a .396, but that includes a BABIP of .404.  

I like OBP, a lot.

I'd be fine with Donovan, but we'd still need a power bat, and at what position?

OF is already a logjam +1.

We just filled 1B.

DH has the $18M man.

We aren't adding a power bat catcher.

It would have to be 3B, which means trading Mayer. That's not happening.

[Randy Red Sox]

5 hours ago, JoeBrady said:

The article doesn't say we might make that trade, only that we are still talking to StL about Donovan.

IRT to saving money, the difference in salary this year is less than $500k.  That's couch cushion change.

And finally, Bello is #110 out of 127 in K%-BB%.  That's not good.  The IPs he puts up are important, but do you really think that the addition of Donovan would not out-weigh the departure of Bello?  Bello's slot would like be taken by Early of Tolle.

 

no i don't have faith that either of those 2 are ready to replace Bello YET.  Maybe one day but why doesn't the tightwad simply open his damn wallet and spend a bit to fill the holes. As I said Donovan is a decent 2B but not a needle mover. WHEN WHEN WHEN do we spend the $$ saved on the Devers DUMP.??

[Randy Red Sox]

1 hour ago, JoeBrady said:

I appreciate the leadership angle, but Bregman might only have two good years left.  I wouldn't pay for four extra years, unless the AAV was low.  $100M/4 dressed up to look like $150M/6.

Forget about Bregman. He's all about the $$ and not worth a 4-5 yr deal.  Put the faith in Mayer. 

[moonslav59]

6 minutes ago, Randy Red Sox said:

no i don't have faith that either of those 2 are ready to replace Bello YET.  Maybe one day but why doesn't the tightwad simply open his damn wallet and spend a bit to fill the holes. As I said Donovan is a decent 2B but not a needle mover. WHEN WHEN WHEN do we spend the $$ saved on the Devers DUMP.??

I'm afraid they convinced themselves the money was spent on Anthony and Campbell.

[JoeBrady]

11 minutes ago, Randy Red Sox said:

Forget about Bregman. He's all about the $$ and not worth a 4-5 yr deal.  Put the faith in Mayer. 

You could still put your faith in Mayer and start him at 2nd.  But I'd be fine starting him at 3rd and winging it with Romy/DHam.

[JoeBrady]

7 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

I'm afraid they convinced themselves the money was spent on Anthony and Campbell.

They were at $249M last year.  So long as they get to the level this year, then they've spent the money.  And they are already at $239M.

[moonslav59]

21 minutes ago, JoeBrady said:

They were at $249M last year.  So long as they get to the level this year, then they've spent the money.  And they are already at $239M.

You can see it that way, and to me, if we spend near that, you're right.

Iguess I wasn't expecting to spend it via trades and not FAs.

[moonslav59]

26 minutes ago, JoeBrady said:

You could still put your faith in Mayer and start him at 2nd.  But I'd be fine starting him at 3rd and winging it with Romy/DHam.

We shouldn't have to wing it.

We have one big hole: 2B or 3B. We should be able to fill the need, even without spending by just trading an OF'er.

[moonslav59]

59 minutes ago, JoeBrady said:

They were at $249M last year.  So long as they get to the level this year, then they've spent the money.  And they are already at $239M.

We should have $5-10M to spend, but should be able to go up to the second line (about $24M.)

If we don't we have enough trade capital to fill the needs we have. I only see one major need.

[Hitch]

17 hours ago, Randy Red Sox said:

NO--the fact of the matter is because JH refuses to allow CB to spend on the FA market he has to trade away quality assets to fill the holes with less costly players than what is in the FA market. Now according to MLBTR it looks like we might trade Bello to St Louis for Donovan to play 2B. This would be insane IMO. 

I love it when people sate a total (and ludicrous) guess as fact. The idea that Henry is on the phone to Breslow saying - "don't forget now, you're not allowed to spend on a free agent."  😂

[Hitch]

10 hours ago, JoeBrady said:

They were at $249M last year.  So long as they get to the level this year, then they've spent the money.  And they are already at $239M.

Amazing this needs to be pointed out. I think for some, unless another $300m contract is paid out, it hasn't been spent.