Red Sox Will Be 'Heavily Considered' By Shohei Ohtani In Free Agency

Boston could use some star power

Scott Neville | Nov 5, 2023

Red Sox Will Be 'Heavily Considered' By Shohei Ohtani In Free Agency /

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Boston Red Sox

Would the Boston Red Sox actually have a chance to sign the best player in Major League Baseball this winter?

Former Los Angeles Angels two-way sensation Shohei Ohtani will be the most heavily-targeted free agent this offseason and have many destinations to mull over. In doing so, he reportedly will give serious consideration to the Red Sox.

"The Los Angeles Dodgers are the overwhelming favorites to sign Ohtani," USA Today's Bob Nightengale wrote Sunday.

"The Chicago Cubs are the sleeper pick, several GMs say, particularly with $43 million coming off their books with the expiration of Jason Heyward’s contract and Marcus Stroman opting out.

"The Boston Red Sox, with new GM Craig Breslow, are expected to be heavily considered.

"The New York Yankees, New York Mets, Toronto Blue Jays, San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners, San Diego Padres and Texas Rangers will all make strong pushes."

The Red Sox's need to bolster the pitching staff could ultimately deter them from going all-in on Ohtani but there has been some optimism that they'll be in the race as of late.

MLB.com listed Boston as one of eight potential landing spots for Ohtani and The New York Post's Jon Heyman gave the Red Sox the fifth-best odds to acquire him.

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.

The 29-year-old has more of an individual impact on the game than anyone else but he can't win alone. With that in mind, the Red Sox might be better off loading up on multiple frontline starters. It would also be an odd fit to add yet another premier left-handed batter.

All of that said, it would be absolutely electric if Ohtani were to choose the Red Sox this winter.

More MLB: Red Sox Linked To Superstar Pitcher With Free Agency About To Heat Up

Published Nov 5, 2023

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