Red Sox, Yankees Among 'Main Players' To Sign Predicted $180M All-Star

Will the Red Sox land one of the top players available this offseason?

Jul 22, 2019; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; A detail view of Boston Red Sox hat and glove laying in the dugout at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-Imagn Images / Kim Klement-Imagn Images

The Boston Red Sox clearly want to add pitching and reportedly are targeting the top of the market.

As this offseason opened up, it was clear that there were three main free-agent starting pitchers. Corbin Burnes widely was considered the best, followed by Blake Snell and Max Fried. All three seemingly are in a different tier than any of the other starters available.

Snell already flew off the market by signing a mammoth deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Burnes and Fried should soon follow -- especially with the Juan Soto sweepstakes seemingly nearing its end. Any team with a large checkbook and a need for pitching should be in the mix for these two stars.

The New York Post's Jon Heyman reported on Thursday that the Red Sox and bitter rival New York Yankees are among the "main players" for Burnes, along with a few other teams.

"Yanks, (Toronto Blue Jays), Red Sox, (San Francisco Giants), (Baltimore Orioles) are among main players for Corbin Burnes," Heyman said. "NYY could possibly, potentially do both Soto and Burnes (but of course they’d look to save money elsewhere if they did)"

Boston and New York already are in one bidding war for Soto. It sounds like he isn't the only free agent that both clubs have their eyes on.

Burnes would be a great fit for the Red Sox, although they also would still need to go out and land a lefty. He's currently predicted to land a six-year, $180 million deal by Spotac. But, Snell got $182 million from the Dodgers so don't be shocked if Burnes' price tag reaches closer to $200 million.

More MLB: Juan Soto Saga Update: Red Sox Looking For New Meeting, Per Insider