After the trade with the Cardinals for Willson Contreras, the Boston Red Sox came out almost immediately and said they were still looking for another bat to supplement their lineup. They also said it was likely they were leaning towards free agency to acquire that bat. Everyone knew that likely meant signing either Alex Bregman or Bo Bichette. The former went on to sign a five-year deal with the Chicago Cubs.
According to reports, one of the sticking points was how the Red Sox structured deferred payments in their offer to Bregman compared to the Cubs. It's just the latest example of the unwillingness of Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow and ownership to go the extra mile to secure the type of talent they'll tell anyone who will listen they want.
In Redneck Woman, Gretchen Wilson Said, ”I Can Buy the Same Damn Thing on a Walmart Shelf Half Price.”
Over the past two seasons, the Red Sox have failed to close the deal on key free agents, like not going an extra year for Max Fried last year, missing out on Pete Alonso this winter, partly due to reluctance to give a long-term deal to the slugger because of his age (32). They also dealt away Rafael Devers less than three years after signing the slugger to a 10-year, $313 million extension. Now, they have failed to bring back Bregman in part because their deferral structure was more long-term than the one he received from the Cubs. It’s starting to look like the Red Sox philosophy when it comes to player acquisition is straight from a line in Gretchen Wilson’s hit song “Redneck Woman.” The line states, “I can buy the same damn thing on a Walmart shelf half price.”
The team could still go out and sign Bichette, but it certainly appears the team thinks it is doing a good job of trying to save money where possible while doing just enough to give the appearance of still trying to bring in elite talent. This philosophy is great when discussing a wardrobe, but this is baseball, and while the players they’ve acquired are good, much like the clothes on a Walmart shelf, these players are not of the same caliber. Being reluctant to seal the deal with the best of the best will catch up with them as division rivals like the Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles haven’t been afraid to do what it takes this winter to get players they want.
There Are Multiple Issues with Trying to Supplement a Roster This Way
Every time a player signs a long-term nine-figure contract, the immediate reaction is to talk about how terrible the contract is. In today’s day and age, nearly all of those long-term deals are bad. It’s like a new car that depreciates as soon as it’s driven off the lot, but that is the nature of free agency these days. You have to be willing to get uncomfortable, as Breslow once said, because for a team like Boston, one of those bad contracts could lead to another championship or two. If that happened, I bet people would care a lot less about the contract because, as some like to say, flags fly forever.
Another problem with being unwilling to go the extra mile in free agency is that it forces you to supplement your roster via trades. This is something Breslow has been good at this winter, but continually dipping into the farm system will quickly deplete said system. He knows this because he said so after trading for Contreras; he said they were looking for another bat, and that would likely come in free agency. With Bregman gone, the obvious target should be Bichette. However, nothing that has happened over the last two years suggests they will do what it takes to get the player.
This inability to close the deal in free agency has led Breslow and company to move the goalposts multiple times in terms of what their goals for the roster are. At the beginning of the offseason, everyone knew they needed to add power after losing Devers. That meant Kyle Schwarber and Alonso were the obvious targets. They didn’t want to give five years to a premier slugger, who is 32 years old. Then the messaging was about lengthening the lineup, which led to the trade for Contreras. Still wanting to add to the lineup in free agency, this meant likely signing Bregman or Bichette. However, after losing out on Bregman, Breslow came out and said they will still look at all avenues to improve the roster, and that could mean leaning more into the pitching side of things.
To me, these statements say one of two things. Either Breslow and his team don’t really know how to read the offensive free agent market, or the team will not sign a much-needed bat to any long-term contract. Heck, they got out from under one that they gave to a homegrown star less than three years later. If it’s the former, perhaps Breslow should bring someone in to help with the offensive part of the team. If it’s the latter and they don’t want to admit for fear of the public relations hit, then they are tone deaf as well because we fans notice what is happening. Fans are tired of this team saying they’re going shopping at Neiman Marcus but sneaking into Walmart for the rollback deals.