According to MLB Insider Hector Gomez, the Boston Red Sox are going to miss out on another free agent this offseason: Jorge Soler.
It appears as if the Boston Red Sox are set to be left at the free agent altar yet again.
Per Insider Hector Gomez on social media:
SOURCE: The #BlueJays appear willing to offer Jorge Soler a multi-year deal as he is seeking. The #Mets continue to show a lot of interest in him. Regarding the #RedSox, it seems that they will be outbid once again.
Let’s dissect this as there are several factors at work:
1) The big story here isn’t that the Red Sox lost out on Soler. The narrative is that the Red Sox are still losing out on everyone.
Soler is not truly needed by the team. They may already choose from six different outfielders. His power would be a great luxury and may maybe allow them to spin an outfielder in a trade for a pitcher, but again, he’s not a necessity. However, the Red Sox have struggled to attract elite players to Boston since they transferred Mookie Betts prior to the 2020 campaign, which has greatly irritated the fan base.
The team hasn’t addressed its biggest need—starting pitching—since trading for Betts, letting Xander Bogaerts walk in free agency, and relying mostly on veterans like Martin Perez, Garrett Richards, and Corey Kluber as stopgaps since the 2020 campaign. Because of this, the Sox have lost in three of the previous four AL East championships.
2) The Red Sox will be further pushed down the division if they lose out to the Toronto Blue Jays for Soler. much with the current level of difficulty in the American League East, Toronto will become much more formidable and distance themselves from Boston if they acquire Soler.
3) Interestingly, the Seattle Mariners, who have also been connected to Soler, are not included in this study.