Milwaukee Brewers first baseman Jake Bauers will be one of the top free-agent bats on the market this offseason (Image credit: MLB.com)
The offseason is getting off to a much earlier start than anticipated for the Boston Red Sox after their elimination from the postseason last week at the hands of the New York Yankees.
After a blistering hot summer, the Red Sox cooled down over the final month and a half of the year, signaling a need for more reinforcements in the hopes of making a deeper postseason run.
Now, this offseason will be different than ever before, with a lockout that’s likely to upend the team-building process for everyone, but that won’t stop us from taking a look at six players – four hitters and two pitchers – who could make sense for the Red Sox to add (when they’re able to) this offseason.
Seiya Suzuki and Randy Arozarena will be the two biggest bats on the market this offseason and are sure to precipitate expensive bidding wars. Between the two, I’m partial to Suzuki for two reasons.
The first is that he’s a great defender with 90th percentile range and 94th percentile arm value. The Red Sox might be set when it comes to their outfield defense of the future, rendering this not that important, but it’s still a nice bonus, especially if the team wants to give the oft-injured Roman Anthony some more time as a DH.
Second, I think Suzuki would be a good fit thanks to his ability to crush fastballs (.444 wOBA against them in 2026), something the Red Sox lineup definitely needs help with. If you wanted to choose Arozarena, though, I wouldn’t think it’s a bad idea, as both would be tremendous additions to the lineup as righty power threats.
At first glance, someone with Jake Bauers’ profile for the Red Sox, but he could make some sense given what he does well – get on base and hit the ball hard – two things you can never have enough of.
Bauers enjoyed a breakout year with the Brewers, clubbing 26 home runs and slashing .266/.389/.484 with a 143 wRC+ and 3.6 fWAR. And despite being a sharp platoon hitter from the left side for much of his career, he crushed lefties this year with a .901 OPS, albeit in 160 plate appearances. He’s also going to be 31 years old on Opening Day – roughly the same age as Suzuki and Arozarena – but won’t command as big a deal as either of them.
Defensively, the fit is a bit trickier as he’s a below-average defender at first base and in the outfield. He’d likely be a better DH option, though, than Masataka Yoshida due to his power and could at least spell Willson Contreras at first base or give the corner outfielders a day off here and there.
Jake Bauers’ 2026 Baseball Savant page showing strong batted ball and plate discipline numbers
Ty France enjoyed a nice season with the Padres after being something of an afterthought of an addition over the offseason. In 500 plate appearances this year, France hit 21 home runs with a .295/.363/.502 slash line while also playing respectable defense, mostly at first base.
France has historically been a much better hitter against lefties in his career, making him more of a platoon option, but he impressed against both righties (.869 OPS) and lefties (0.853 OPS) this season. At worst, he could represent a better right-handed platoon option to pair with Yoshida, or could serve in that role on a full-time basis thanks to having a bit more thump in his bat.
Additionally, his defense is serviceable enough that he could play first base in relief of Contreras or even some third base in a pinch.
Looking into the clearance section, Edmundo Sosa makes sense for the Red Sox infield. Sosa has played the last five seasons with the Phillies and has never been anything more than an option off the bench, but he’s a solid option even if it’s just as a stopgap or platoon hitter against lefties.
Sosa has played mostly second base, third base, and shortstop, but has moonlighted in the outfield a bit as well. Wherever he’s at, though, he’s been an average to above-average defender. He provides a bit more offensive upside with some pop to his pull side over Isiah Kiner-Falefa while being better defensively than Andruw Monasterio and Romy Gonzalez. He’s also 84th percentile in sprint speed as a bonus.
Shortstop Trevor Story has just one more year on his contract but has proven to be rather susceptible to injury. Sosa could be a good insurance option to have if the Red Sox aren’t dead-set on a Franklin Arias promotion just yet.
Although the Red Sox middle infield is crowded, now-former Philadelphia Phillie Edmundo Sosa could be useful off the bench (Image credit: MLB.com)
With Sonny Gray possibly departing via free agency or retiring, a starting pitcher will be a need this offseason. And with Garrett Crochet, Ranger Suarez, and Payton Tolle back as the 1-2-3, and Brayan Bello, Jake Bennett, and Johan Oviedo in the fold too, the Red Sox can afford to take a bit of a flier here. Former No. 1 overall pick Casey Mize fits the bill.
Mize had an up-and-down tenure with the Tigers but looked like a really solid mid-rotation option at times. In the second half, after being traded to the Padres, though, he took a big step back with a 7.46 ERA/7.18 FIP in 44.2 innings – likely sinking his value a bit.
The reasoning for Mize being a fit for the Red Sox isn’t complicated. Extension has been the name of the game for Craig Breslow and the pitching department, and Mize is really good there, in the 83rd percentile this year. The rest of his arsenal isn’t anything really impressive, but he could be a good ball of clay for Andrew Bailey to mold and might offer a bit higher of a floor compared to the Walker Buehler experiment from last season.
Casey Mize could be a good flier for the Red Sox pitching lab this offseason if Sonny Gray doesn’t return (Image credit: MLB.com)
Among Red Sox lefty relievers, Erik Miller was a big-ticket addition at the trade deadline, but he lost his mechanics late in the year and isn’t a guarantee to regain his dominant form. Similarly, Jovani Moran, Tyler Samaniego, Eduardo Rivera, and Alec Gamboa were all lefties the team used out of the bullpen this year. However, none of them have long track records of success.
A mid-to-high leverage lefty option bears consideration, so I landed on soft-tossing Tyler Alexander of the Texas Rangers, who took a big step forward in 2026 after dropping his four-seam usage and has always limited walks. He also won’t command any sort of expensive or longer-term deal. This spot could really be anyone’s preference, though, and I wouldn’t blame you for looking at more expensive options like Adrian Morejon, Gregory Soto, or Alex Vesia – especially with Aroldis Chapman’s deal expiring after 2027 and the need for a closer of the future.