Red Sox Projected As 'Best Fit' For $66 Million Dodgers Superstar Free Agent

The signing Boston needs to make?

Sep 20, 2019; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; A detail view of Boston Red Sox hats and gloves at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-Imagn Images / Kim Klement-Imagn Images

The Boston Red Sox are like many of us--looking forward to the holidays, but procrastinating on their shopping list.

It's been known since the start of the offseason that the Red Sox desperately needed right-handed power, but the market has moved slowly on that front. That doesn't mean the Red Sox can't still get their man, but it's allowed doubt to creep in.

One of the only right-handed bats to sign so far happens to be Boston's 2024 home run leader, Tyler O'Neill, who inked a three-year deal with the Baltimore Orioles. Though the Red Sox weren't exactly enthusiastic about keeping O'Neill, they also have to find someone who can replace his production.

The most obvious fit all along has been Teoscar Hernández, the recent World Series champion from the Los Angeles Dodgers. But Hernández has been so candid about his desire to return to LA that it's no cinch that the Red Sox can broker a deal to bring him to Boston.

On Thursday, however, Zachary D. Rymer of Bleacher Report named the Red Sox as the "best fit" for Hernández, who has historically been a tour de force at Fenway Park.

"Though the Dodgers are still in on Teoscar Hernández, they now have Michael Conforto in the space that Hernández used to roam in left field," Rymer said. "As the Yankees figure to be out of the outfield market after trading for Bellinger, that leaves the Red Sox to finally get their man."

"Boston went after Hernández last winter, and the interest seems mutual this time. The slugger is back on the Red Sox's radar and reportedly "intrigued" about playing at Fenway Park."

Hernández, 32, hit a career-high 33 home runs in 2024 while putting up a robust .840 OPS/137 OPS+. He has 14 homers in 45 career games at Fenway, good for a .606 slugging percentage and .950 OPS.

Hernández was also recently projected for a three-year, $66 million contract by Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller.

At this point, the Red Sox are getting desperate for right-handed power, and Hernández is one of only two or three exciting options left in free agency. If their pledge to spend big holds water, Hernández is the perfect person to drop a bag on.

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