DALLAS — There are no prizes for finishing second — or third — in the bidding for a glamorous free agent. They do not award runner-up medals for free agent negotiations.
The Red Sox tried, but came up empty on outfielder Juan Soto, falling roughly $65 million short of the New York Mets’ 15-year, $765 million winning bid. It was different long shots that went in and indeed ran at the end as well.
Still, the effort and interest from the Sox was legitimate. Finally, when the bidding exceeded $700 million, they cashed out. It’s fair to say that Mets owner Steve Cohen, the game’s richest owner, wasn’t about to let Soto, his white whale, slip away. If I had $800 million, I would definitely have gone there too.
Landing Soto was always going to be a luxury buy for the Red Sox. By the end of the season, it was clear that pitching was the team’s main need and two months later, after Soto, it remains so. Nothing has changed.
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In one sense, losing Soto can be liberating the Red Sox. Had they won the bidding for him, it might have forced the Red Sox to trade for pitching help, as owner John Henry, after spending three-quarters of a billion on the outfielder, might not have authorized another $200 million. dollars more for a top. free agent starting pitcher.
Now, the Red Sox start over, with a blank slate and no strings attached. And his willingness to go toe-to-toe, at least to a point, with the Mets and Yankees has earned him new respect from his fan base, which was skeptical of Soto’s level of commitment until the end The $700 million or so they offered gave them credibility.
The key for the Red Sox is not to squander the goodwill that the pursuit of Soto brought them. That will require the same aggressiveness they’ve already shown as they look to fill the other holes on the roster.
* The Red Sox still need a No. 1 starter. Two experienced starters, Corbin Burnes and Max Fried, remain on the free agent market, no doubt ready to pounce now that several big-market teams lost out on Soto. The Yankees will be eager to go big, having been usurped in their own city. So will the Dodgers and Blue Jays, two teams that seemed more on the fringes of Soto’s pursuit.
The Sox can’t afford to sit here. And after showing an appetite to spend $700 million, they need to pursue at least one of the two with the same zeal they showed for Soto.
There are other launch options available. Roki Sasaki will be published on Tuesdaybut it’s unlikely to be a battle the Sox can win. Japanese players are now drawn to Dodger Stadium like moths to a flame, and if Sasaki doesn’t want to go there, he can opt for San Diego and join a rotation with his hero, Yu Darvish. Money won’t be the separator here, because as an international amateur, teams are limited in what they can spend on Sasaki.
Then there is the trade route. For whatever reason: Unwillingness to deal shortstop prospect Marcelo Mayer? – The Red Sox have been strangely quiet lately in trade talks for Garrett Crochet of the White Sox.
Their willingness to make Triston Casas available in trade talks, the Boston Globe reports , suggests the team is exploring other offers for first basemen and controllables. But there are also so many to go around. Quick action is required.
* The team still desperately needs a right-handed bat.
Going after Soto to balance out a lineup that’s already too left-handed and about to get more, with the expected arrival of Roman Anthony, Kyle Teel and Mayer, was an exception to the rule. Soto may be the best overall hitter in the game, and even though he’s left-handed, he could hit lefties better than most right-handed hitters.
Now with Soto off the board, the search for a right-handed bat begins again, made more evident by the departure of Tyler O’Neill, who led the team in home runs last season.
The top free agent option is Teoscar Hernandez, who is said to prefer returning to the Los Angeles Dodgers, with whom he won a World Series on a one-year cushion contract.
But Hernandez has said repeatedly how much he likes playing at Fenway Park, because of its size, its energy and its history. This is an opening for the Sox, for sure.
It won’t be easy to beat the Dodgers, who have seemingly limitless resources and can practically guarantee a player the opportunity to compete for multiple championships. But the Dodgers are also remarkably disciplined and not afraid to walk away from a deal that’s beyond their comfort zone. Maybe it’s up to the Red Sox to be the ones to take them there and steal Hernandez.
* Another back bullpen arm would still be welcome.
Ethical issues aside, the signing of Aroldis Chapman was a good first step. But the Red Sox would do well to step up their pursuit of Tanner Scott. A mix of Scott, Chapman, Liam Hendriks, Justin Slaten and maybe Luis Guerrero would give the Red Sox no fewer than five swing-and-miss arms for the late innings.
And here’s the thing: The Red Sox could probably get one of Fried or Burnes, more Hernandez more Scott for a little more than half of what they were willing to lavish on Soto.
The responsibility lies with them.
The Red Sox are getting our attention again.
Now we’ll see what they do with it.