Red Sox Tried Signing 2-Time All-Star Before $26 Million Deal

it sounds like Red Sox wanted to bring another All-Star to town

Mar 12, 2024; Surprise, Arizona, USA; Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Shane Bieber (57) bats against the Texas Rangers during the second inning at Surprise Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images / Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

The Boston Red Sox certainly have had their full focus on the starting rotation this offseason.

Boston has landed two All-Star pitchers in Garrett Crochet and Walker Buehler. While this is the case, these two aren't the only hurlers the team pursued. Before landing Crochet and Buehler, the Red Sox reportedly "tried very hard" to sign Cleveland Guardians All-Star Shane Bieber, according to FanSided's Robert Murray on "The Baseball Insiders."

“They tried very hard for Shane Bieber,” Murray said. “I thought at one point it was going to end up happening.”

This isn't the first time that it has been mentioned that Bieber was well-liked in the Boston front office. He's a two-time All-Star and Cy Young Award winner who is just 29 years old. Bieber made just two starts last season,but certainly is a bounce-back candidate for 2025.

Bieber ended up signing a two-year, $26 million deal to return to Cleveland. That's a deal that the Red Sox surely could've afforded, but it just seems like his preference was to return to Cleveland. He has spent his entire seven-year big league career with the Guardians.

He'll have a chance to test the market next year if he wants to. Bieber has a player option for 2026 worth $16 million. If he decides to pick it up, he will be a free agent once the 2026 season ends. If he doesn't pick it up, maybe Boston could go after him again next year.

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