Inside The Red Sox

Red Sox 'Can't Be Ruled Out' For Two-Time MVP Looking To Sign Soon

Boston could use some star power on the roster

Scott Neville

Red Sox 'Can't Be Ruled Out' For Two-Time MVP Looking To Sign Soon
Red Sox 'Can't Be Ruled Out' For Two-Time MVP Looking To Sign Soon /
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Will the Boston Red Sox come out of nowhere and sign arguably the most intriguing free agent in Major League Baseball?

The Red Sox have not been deemed frontrunners for two-way sensation Shohei Ohtani but they have been regularly noted as in the mix. MLB.com listed Boston as one of three darkhorse destinations to land the generational talent alongside the Toronto Blue Jays and Atlanta Braves.

"Ohtani is said to love hitting at Fenway Park, and in his two career starts there, he’s allowed one run while striking out 14 over nine innings," MLB.com's Mark Feinsand wrote. "Just as Chaim Bloom’s tenure was defined by his early trade of Mookie Betts, perhaps (Breslow’s) run as chief baseball officer will be launched by the signing of the two-time American League Most Valuable Player."

Ohtani hit .304 with 78 extra-base hits including 44 home runs, 95 RBIs and a 1.066 OPS in 135 games this season. On the mound, he posted a 10-5 record with a 3.14 ERA, 167-to-55 strikeout-to-walk ratio, .184 batting average against and a 1.061 WHIP in 132 innings across 23 starts.

There is no question that Ohtani is a franchise-altering force, and that's not even including his marketability. 

In a normal year, it would be logical to assume that the Red Sox go all-in for Ohtani. However, Boston is starved for high-end pitching and might not be willing to wait around to get it. With Ohtani not returning to the mound until 2025, the Red Sox might have to invest the bulk of their resources in the pitching staff.

More MLB: Red Sox Sign Southpaw After Stellar 2023 Campaign To Bolster Pitching Depth

 

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Scott Neville
SCOTT NEVILLE

Scott Neville covers the Boston Red Sox for Sports Illustrated's new page "Inside The Red Sox." Before starting "Inside The Red Sox", Neville attended Merrimack College, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media with a minor in Marketing. Neville spent all four years with Merrimack's radio station WMCK, where he grew as a radio/podcast host and producer.  His propensity for being in front of a microphone eventually expanded to film, where he produced multiple short films alongside his then-roommate and current co-worker Stephen Mottram. On a journey that began as a way to receive easy credits via film classes, he received a call from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star Charlie Day. Day advised him to make a feature-length film, which he completed his senior year. While writing the film, Neville completed an internship for United Way as part of their NFL Partnership Program. Neville ran the blog for a team of interns and hosted an internet show called "United Way's NFL Partnership Series" where he interviewed NFL alumni. After college Neville wrote for SB Nation's "Over The Monster," a Red Sox sister site of the flagship brand. His work would eventually lead him to a job as a content producer with NESN, where he would cover all sports. After developing as a writer with the top regional network in the world, he was given the opportunity to join the Sports Illustrated Media Group in his current endeavor as the publisher of "Inside The Red Sox." The successful launch and quick rise of "Inside The Red Sox" led to Neville joining the Baseball Essential ownership group, a national baseball site under SIMG. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottNeville46 Email: nevilles@merrimack.edu

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