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Seriously? You accuse him of blindly liking everything Bloom does. And then when he actually does overtly question something, then you accuse him of not doubting it enough? Maybe he’s not the wishy-washy one…

I think there is a lot of truth to that. The Dodgers went all in on Bauer, and now they’ll do anything short of a murder-for-hire scheme to get out of that deal…

Hopefully non-existent…

What about at $5mill? He hasn’t settled for anything yet…

The rotation now has 8 options plus mid season depth in Paxton, assuming at least one of Houck/Whitlock join Sale, Eovaldi, Pivetta and Wacha. Seabold, Crawford and Winckowski are there early season depth. I’d prefer to bump both of Houck and Whitlock back into the pen, but I don’t think it’s going to happen. From the reliever market, maybe two from Archie Bradley, Mychal Givens, Oliver Drake or Wander Suero? And a 2b (no idea?) or a CF (even less of an idea?). I suppose a Duran in CF, Hernandez to 2b remains possible. Maybe the trade market, which will take a while if nothing happens today? Free agency has some mildly interesting names, but nothing that makes the ol’ coccyx rattle…

So… two injury prone pitchers for the price of one?

He’s also out until July/August. While he did check a few boxes, he’s a stretch drive addition and maybe a piece for 2023…

So far, there have been a few couple mildly intriguing non-tenders, all relievers. The Braves non-tendering Richard Rodriguez should catch Bloom's attention. Wander Suero was pretty awful last year, but has actually been pretty good for the bulk of his career. Robert Gsellman had some promise, too, before getting hurt. Either one is probably worth taking a chance on to see if they can rebound. Suero seems like the better bet...

So the only non-tender was Locastro? A first year arb player unlikely to make $1mill in arbitration?

Cesar Hernandez to the Nationals. Sad

He’s not really inactive. https://www.nbcsportsedge.com/baseball/mlb/player-news/headlines/10463431 IKF isn’t some big name, but he’s a very good all around player…

I’d rather have Renfroe than Schwarber. Schwarber is an on base machine, but Renfroe is a better outfielder. Sure Schwarber could step in for JD after next season, but is DH really all that tough to fill? JD would be better replaced with fellow free agent Trey Mancini of Baltimore doesn’t extend him…

Would you sign Kershaw to a one year deal? Lots of mileage and his share of injuries, but he’s still only 33….

With a lot of players being non-tendered today, the list of free agents could get a little more interesting. Tyler Rogers? Ryan Yarborough? Manny Margot? Ramiel Tapia? Kevin Newman? Adam Duvall? Mostly role players, but some of these guys are very good on those roles…

I can see the logic in the Sox pursuing someone like Baez, but I can also see why the Sox are not going after any of these expensive shortstops. They do still have Bogaerts, after all, and might be the richest teams in need of a shortstop next winter when X reached free agency. Right now, the Sox are probably seven s deep in the rotation, with Sale, Eovaldi, Whitlock/Houck, Pivetta, Wacha, Seabold and Crawford. And then maybe Winckowski as the 8th guy ready. So maybe just 2b (Cesar Hernandez?) and a couple relief pitchers to fill out the roster. The contract given to Barnes (2.5 fWAR in the past 3 years) is looking fairly representative now for relievers like him, given it’s very close to the one given to a Hector Neris (2.3 fWAR in the past 3 years). But it’s still probably less than we see go for Stroman. And possibly less than the extremely risky Carlos Rodon. So maybe the Sox grab a reliever or redo from the Archie Bradley/Mychal Givens types. One name I might think is in Bloom’s radar is the very underrated Oliver Drake…

Most likely a lot of players are just playing it safe. Bird in the hand and all that…

Hey, we both anticipated show off-seasons like the past two. I have mixed emotions. Nice to see it moving. But it would be nice to see Boston involved…

The Tigers were soooooo close..,

Baez to Detroit?

Dodgers are close to signing Daniel Hudson and pay him Mike Wacha money.

If you get Matt Olson, won’t he check a few boxes?

It’s not like he wanted them covered with whipped cream…

That deal is all about year two. Yates is probably out until August of this year, isn’t he?

Pirates DFAd former first rounder Colin Moran. Left-handed hitting 1b/3b/LF with a career .781 OPS vs RHP. Given Bloom’s past successes with former first rounders, Moran might end up as the platoon mate with Dalbec, at least until Casas gets the call…

And ignore that the Sox were still among the highest spenders in MLB in 2019, 2020 and 2021 despite adding no big contracts…