Little Dominican Republic In Boston
A Blog By Dean
So, part of this blog is just a Red Sox fan hoping and dreaming. Part of it, though, is what I hear on the streets/my lone source within the Red Sox circle.
To start, I want to quickly address the change of heart many Red Sox fans have had pertaining to Triston Casas. In July, I wrote the below blog and posted on X about the potential of the Red Sox trading Triston Casas for Vladimir Guerrero Jr. I thought Blue Jays fans would be the ones going after me. I was disappointed when I began getting death threats from Red Sox fans. Now, when I say death threats, I by no means think I was ever in danger. Regardless, the reaction from Red Sox fans at the time was heated. Now we are in November, and the potential for Juan Soto to join the Red Sox has reignited the conversation.
It has been widely reported that the Red Sox met with Juan Soto last night for over three hours. There was no money discussed; all teams assume this is a $600 million man, and anything less, you might have walked away. It was also reported that Juan Soto was “impressed” with the Red Sox vision for him and the team.
I spoke with my one source, I am a rookie insider, about what he is hearing. Here is what I have heard right now.
Here is their current A plan.
-Sign Juan Soto
-Trade for Vladimir Guerrero Jr (Casas would be involved in the deal)
-Trade for Garret Crochet (2nd half decline has made him more affordable)
-Go after Snell or Fried
-Meet with Roki Sasaki (Hoping Yoshida can play a role)
This might sound redundant as it is every team's A plan. However, with six prospects in the Top 100, they feel like they have the flexibility to go for it and not sacrifice their future.
Currently, they are 14th in payroll after spending most of the 2000s in the Top 5, and it has been widely reported that they want this to change. They have the room to go and get Soto and the hope is that if they were to get Guerrero Jr that they can woo him to stay with the team long term.
The biggest financial roadblock right now is Trevor Story’s contract which is set to run until 2027. Story does have an opt out after this season, but the chances of him taking it are next to zero.
Many believe that Soto wants to be “the guy,” and while Rafael Devers is the face of the franchise, he does not have the personality (nor the desire, in my opinion) to be the face of the team. With the Yankees, Soto will not be the guy for as long as Aaron Judge is in pinstripes. The Yankees have one player in the Top 100, that being Jasson Dominguez. The team is aging and poorly constructed, and there will be no youth movement anywhere in the future.
The Red Sox on the other hand are young, fun, financially independent, and ready to be one of the leagues superpowers again.
I did not hear this from my source, but I have to imagine that the Red Sox front office had the same feeling us fans did after watching The Comeback on Netflix.
Hungry.
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