ORLANDO — As of Tuesday evening, the Red Sox were still trying to finalize plans to meet with free agent slugger Pete Alonso in person.
According to an industry source, the Sox and Alonso have already met via Zoom prior to the start of the Winter Meetings. Not surprisingly, the Red Sox would like to meet in person, too as they ramp up their pursuit of the top power hitter remaining on the free agent market. Plans were complicated somewhat Tuesday by high-ranking front office members battling cold/flu symptoms and limiting in-person interactions throughout the day,
Alonso lives in Tampa, about 75 miles west of Orlando, and could potentially return to the Winter Meetings Wednesday for an in-person meeting. He is known to be bouncing around the Waldorf Astoria Orlando for in-person meetings and the Orioles were reportedly on his list as well.
It’s likely that Alonso’s ask price increased Tuesday with the news that Kyle Schwarber agreed to a five-year deal with the Phillies. If Schwarber can command a five-year deal just a few months shy of 33, it’s likely that Alonso will be seeking either a six- or seven-year deal. It’s unknown if the Red Sox would be willing to commit to a contract that would pay Alonso to his age 36 or age 37 season.
While agent Scott Boras said he expected Alonso’s market to pick up in the wake of the Schwarber deal, a source with knowledge of the bidding said his expectation is that Alonso’s market drags past this week.
Paredes a target
In addition to exploring some free agent solutions, the Red Sox continue to discuss some trade possibilities with several clubs.
On Monday, MassLive reported talks with the Arizona Diamondbacks centered around second baseman Ketel Marte, while also reporting that the Sox were known to be engaged with three or four other teams.
One of those potential deals, it’s now known, is with the Houston Astros for corner infielder Isaac Paredes, as The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported Tuesday morning.
Paredes can play either first or third and would give the Red Sox a productive right-handed bat. He’ll turn 27 in February and would come with two years of control remaining.
But Paredes doesn’t have the same power profile as some of the other names being pursued by the Red Sox. He’s only hit more than 20 homers once – a career-high 31 in 2023 while with Tampa Bay.
The Astros are in the market for young, controllable pitching and have targeted either Payton Tolle or Connelly Early for their desired early. At least one member of the Red Sox organization Tuesday suggested that was too high an asking price. The Red Sox are getting hits on other controllable pitchers like Hunter Dobbins and Kutter Crawford, though, and those arms might interest teams like Houston.
The Red Sox are certainly open to adding two bats, though the chance of two high-priced free agent additions seems low.
Rule 5 ahead
Part of the motivation for finding a taker for infielder Vaughn Grissom Tuesday was to clear a spot on the team’s 40-man roster to enable them to potentially make a selection in Wednesday’s Rule 5 draft.
Trading Grissom leaves the Red Sox with an open spot; they’re currently at 39.
In recent years, the Red Sox have been fairly active in the Rule 5, landing Garrett Whitlock in the 2020 draft and fellow reliever Justin Slaten in the 2023 draft.
Both times, however, the Red Sox were in rebuilding mode with no real expectations to contend, making it somewhat easier to utilize a season-long active roster spot for an untested player.
Now that the Red Sox, a playoff team last October, have designs on competing for a pennant, do they still have the ability to take a gamble on a Rule 5 choice?
“We’re still working through what our approach will be tomorrow —collecting information, identifying areas of the roster that could benefit from the available player pool,“ said chief baseball officer Craig Breslow. ”But I’m not sure it’s necessarily true that it’s been informative of a competitive level or competitive window.
“You can look at the success of some our recent Rule 5 picks and say that those guys were able to contribute on a championship-caliber team. We need to find the right fit. We need to make sure that we’re not going to hamstring ourselves because 2026 is really important season for us in terms of wins.”
In any case, Grissom had fallen out of favor with the Red Sox and was too low on their depth chart to continue holding a 40-man roster spot.
Matz to start with Rays?
In his media availability with reporters, manager Alex Cora may have provided a hint as to how a divisional rival might use a new free agent signee.
Lefty Steven Matz, who reportedly agreed to a two-year, $15 million contract with the Rays late Monday, might return to starting despite making 51 of his 53 appearances as a reliever in 2025. During Matz’s two-month stint with the Sox after a trade deadline deal, Matz made it clear to Cora he felt like his days in a rotation aren’t over.
“I talked to him throughout September and October,” Cora said. “He felt like he wanted to be a starter again, and no doubt about it, he’ll be fine. Strike-throwing machine, workaholic, good guy. They’ve got a good one.”
Relief market a possibility for Sox
Don’t discount the possibility of the Red Sox adding a veteran reliever or two via free agency. While adding power is clearly a priority at this point — and pitching additions are on the back-burner — there remains the possibility of Boston adding someone as a bridge to Garrett Whitlock and Aroldis Chapman.
One name the Red Sox have checked in on? Seranthony Dominguez, though nothing is hot there as of Tuesday night.
