∗ Days after their 2025 season ended, the Red Sox publicly identified a front-line starter and more pop for their lineup as their primary offseason needs.
Just a little more than a week out from the official start of spring training, they’re only 1-for-2. They smartly improved the rotation with three new starters, but offensively, they obtained just one upgrade (Willson Contreras).
And now, as they seek an infielder, there are indications that they’re prioritizing glove over bat.
On one hand, that makes perfect sense. If the Red Sox are looking to better their run prevention, better defense is a key part of the equation. It’s fine to improve the rotation, but that will be mitigated if the infield can’t convert balls in play into outs.
But as important as pitching and defense are, a big reason the Red Sox were one-and-done in the postseason last fall was their pop-gun attack. In three games, they hit exactly one home run — a solo shot from Trevor Story. In October, matched against quality pitching, successful teams have to hit the ball out of the ballpark. Teams that out-homered their opponents last fall were 29-5.
Meanwhile, during the regular season, the Red Sox were exactly middle of the pack (15th) when it came to homers. No one on the team managed to hit more than 25.
Contreras can be expected to match what the Red Sox would have gotten out of Alex Bregman for a full season. But that only brings them back to square one when it comes to slug. And while it’s reasonable to expect the Sox will get more production from Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer over full seasons, even that may not be enough. They haven’t demonstrably improved their power.
Of the remaining available options, either via trade or free agency, only Eugenio Suarez would deliver thump. And he comes with several significant negatives (huge strikeout rate, poor defense).
This late in the offseason, there’s not much from which to choose. But having waited until February to fill this need, the Red Sox have only themselves to blame.
∗ After this week, I don’t ever again want to hear how flawed the Baseball Hall of Fame voting is. The Football Hall of Fame soiled itself with the Bill Belichick debacle.
Unlike the Baseball HOF, where better than 80 percent of the voters opt to have their ballots made public (the Baseball Writers Association of America has proposed making ballot disclosure mandatory and the Hall of Fame has inexplicably repeatedly rejected the offer), no one knows for whom voters voted in football. And some that try, can’t quite seem to remember. It was, after all, all of two weeks ago!
Worse, the Football Hall of Fame was guilty of leaking news about both Belichick and Eli Manning (he fell short, too), weeks before the official announcement was to be made. Nice process they’ve got there.
Finally, by lumping contributors and coaches like Robert Kraft and Belichick together with senior nominees like Kenny Anderson, L.C. Greenwood and Roger Craig, the HOF needlessly complicates the voting process.
∗ The Jayson Tatum saga was entirely predictable. Back in the fall, I noted that Tatum was only setting up himself —and his team — for disappointment.
It was obvious that the chance of a setback was great. A ruptured Achilles is no small injury and believing that he was going to overcome the challenges and return months ahead of schedule was always a dangerous gambit.
∗ Conservatively speaking, there’s at least $30 million in dead money on the current Red Sox ledger sheet: $18 million (and another $18 million in 2027) for DH/OF Masataka Yoshida and $12 million for Jordan Hicks.
Yoshida has some value, but surely not $18 million. It’s hard to say the same for Hicks, who had an 8.20 ERA in 21 appearances and hasn’t had a good season since 2023.
How hard will Craig Breslow work to unload one or both of these salaries before the start of the season?
∗ The sport of tennis could not have imagined a better matchup in the men’s final of the Australian Open – Carlos Alcaraz attempting to become the youngest to win a career grand slam vs. Novak Djokovic, trying to win a record 25th grand slam. History made either way.
Just one problem: the match took place at 3:30 AM Sunday morning.
∗ It’s clear plenty of people (raises hand sheepishly) were way off on the Bruins, and for that, I humbly apologize to both Don Sweeney and Marco Sturm.
The personnel moves last summer have mostly been good ones and Sturm has done a fabulous job getting the most out of the group. The post-Olympics stretch should be wildly entertaining.
∗ Quite apart from his play on the field and his leadership, it’s stunning to see how mature Drake Maye, 23, is. Maye always manages to say the right thing in press conference and interview settings, not an easy thing for someone two years out of college.
∗ A bit of advice for Patriots fans over the next week: Stop feeling outrage over various media members and their predictions for the Super Bowl. Why let someone else’s opinion interfere with your enjoyment of the game?
∗ New York Islanders wunderkind defenseman Matthew Schaefer wrapped up the NHL’s Calder Trophy months ago, but at this rate, the Bruins’ Fraser Minten is going to get his share of down-ballot votes.
∗ Seems to me that Patriots interim defensive coordinator Zak Kuhr isn’t getting the recognition he should. Kuhr stepped in when Terrell Williams stepped away to battle cancer. Thrust into a tough spot, Kuhr oversaw a defense that finished fourth-best in points allowed and eighth-best in total yards allowed, then limited three postseason opponents to just two touchdowns combined.
∗ What a great loss the passing of Katherine O’Hara is. Best known for her work in the Home Alone series, Schitt’s Creek and SCTV, I’ll remember her for her brilliant turns in Christoper Guest’s string of “mockumentaries,” including Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show and For Your Consideration. RIP to a comic legend.
∗ If your week at all revolves around watching the flag football Pro Bowl game Tuesday night, it’s not too late to seek professional help.
