Boston Red Sox pitchers and catchers report for spring training on Tuesday, Feb. 10, meaning we are just days away from the start of another baseball season. The Sox are coming off a season in which they finished third in the American League East and advanced to the playoffs before falling in the wild card round against the New York Yankees.
Though the Red Sox have been fairly dormant on the free agent front, they have been active as a whole this offseason. So, let’s recap and take a look at what’s coming in Fort Myers.
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Free agents in: LHP Ranger Suarez
Free agents out: 3B Alex Bregman, UTIL Rob Refsnyder
Trades in: RHP Sonny Gray, RHP Johan Oviedo, 1B Willson Contreras
We’re not talking about rocket science here, just basic mathematics. The Red Sox have four excellent outfielders for three outfield spots and the designated hitter spot.
Does manager Alex Cora plan to use Jarren Duran, Roman Anthony, Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu every day and rotate them?
If so, what’s the point of having Masataka Yoshida on the roster? Will someone be dealt? Could Yoshida actually be cut with two years remaining on his original five-year deal?
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Are the Sox going to sit an outfielder in order to play the platoons and get someone like Romy Gonzalez or Isiah Kiner-Falefa in the lineup?
Garrett Crochet, Gray, Brayan Bello, Oviedo and Suarez figure to be the starting rotation as long as everyone is healthy.
Where does that leave Kutter Crawford and Patrick Sandoval, who both missed last season with injury but have performed in the past? And this doesn’t even account for Payton Tolle or Connelly Early, who are two of the top prospects in the sport, or Kyle Harrison, who was acquired last season in the Rafael Devers deal.
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Everyone is banking on Anthony to be a star, but how about Marcelo Mayer and Kristian Campbell? Mayer seems to have the third base position locked up as of now, but can he keep it? Can he play every day, even against tough lefties? And can he stay healthy? He’s never played more than 100 games in any professional season.
As for Campbell, he was given the starting second base job last season but ended up spending most of the year in Triple-A? How does he factor into things in 2026?
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