Red Sox-Shohei Ohtani Rumors Become Official

You know how I know Chaim Bloom is no longer running the Boston Red Sox? Because they're actually in the market for star players this offseason.

That includes the biggest star of all, Shohei Ohtani. The former MVP and two-way superstar is expected to command a massive contract this winter, and the Red Sox are apparently open to giving him one.

Shohei Ohtani Red Sox Rumors

According to ESPN's Jeff Passan, “The Dodgers, Rangers and Boston Red Sox all are expected to be in the Ohtani sweepstakes, according to sources.”

Ah, the old Red Sox are back! After four years of largely ignoring star players on the open market, Boston is seemingly ready to start acting like a big-market team again.

Unfortunately for the Red Sox, they're still long shots to land Ohtani unless they make him an offer he can't refuse. The Dodgers are on the West Coast, where he'd prefer to stay, and the Rangers just won the World Series. Boston is on the opposite side of the country and doesn't look too appealing coming off back-to-back last-place finishes.

Still, it's encouraging that the Red Sox are at least pursuing Ohtani. That signals a drastic change under new Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow, who is already proving to be far more aggressive than his predecessor.

Even if Boston doesn't land Ohtani (who isn't a great fit for the roster, anyway), it will likely score at least one big-name free agent this winter, ideally on the pitching side. Targeting Ohtani is exactly the type of bold, franchise-altering move that the front office should be considering, even if it doesn't ultimately come to fruition.

If Bloom was still here, there'd be crickets. At least we know Breslow is trying.

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