Have you heard? The Red Sox are "in on'' Javier Baez. Oh, and Chris Taylor, too. And maybe, just maybe, Carlos Correa, and Freddie Freeman, too.
And probably nearly every one of the more than 100 free agents in the marketplace.
Boy, that 2022 Red Sox roster is going to be the best ever!
Not so fast.
It's that time of year again, when teams -- especially big-market teams -- are linked to almost every one of the top free agents available. But that's a far cry from signing them, or, even making them serious contract offers.
The same phenomenon took place last winter, with media reporting that the Sox were involved with some of the top free agents. Words are chosen carefully. Teams can "express an interest.'' Or "checked on'' a player. Or "stayed in touch'' with his representatives. Or "have had internal discussions,'' about a player.
But it's wise to consider the context of some of this reporting.
Often, interest -- however tepid -- gets leaked to the media in order to help a free agent's cause. Simply having the Red Sox in on a player can create some leverage for the agent and his client. The idea is to create the impression that a certain player is in demand, with plenty of options from which to choose.
Agents particularly like to play rivals off one another, so it makes sense that if, say, the Yankees are interested in a player, that they know the Red Sox are as well -- even if that interest is mild.
A team could call an agent to communicate that while Player X isn't necessarily a top priority at the moment, that could change if we end up trading Player Y or missing out on Player Z. It's called due diligence, and teams do it routinely.
Sometimes, the leaks or plants are club-driven, for much of the same effect. Even if a team isn't necessarily serious about signing a premium free agent, they could suggest otherwise, if for no other reason than to drive up the price for the competition. There's no hard salary cap in Major League Baseball, but there are consequences for spending -- including luxury tax assessments, loss of international free agent money, and draft picks -- that could come from over-spending.
And, at bottom, teams usually have to adhere to budgets provided by ownership and every dollar spent is one that can't be allocated to address other needs, either later in the offseason, or during the season.
Given all that, it's hard to believe that the Red Sox are going to be major players for any of the big-name middle infielders -- Correa, Baez, Marcus Semien, Trevor Story and Corey Seager. It's likely that all five are going to land deals in excess of $150 million, with Correa and Seager having a chance to approach -- or even surpass -- $300 million.
A couple -- Baez and Semien -- could really upgrade the Sox at second base, where the Sox have Christian Arroyo and, beyond KikΓ© Hernandez, better suited for center, not many other options on the roster. And yes, either one could provide insurance should Xander Bogaerts opt-out of his deal after the 2022 season.
But signing any of those players is almost certain to motivate Bogaerts to opt-out and either leave the organization altogether, or force the Sox into ripping up his contract -- a team-friendly AAV of $20 million -- and giving him a lot more to stay.
And that still wouldn't account for having to extend third baseman Rafael Devers, which the Sox have said is a goal and priority.
Further, it's unlikely the Red Sox have an interest in getting tied down to multiple, nine-figure deals that reduce their payroll flexibility. That hamstrung the post-2018 Red Sox, to the point where they felt the need to deal off their best player, Mookie Betts, and include David Price in the deal, too, just to rid themselves of half his salary.
Lastly, it's ignorant to conclude that because Chaim Bloom once worked for the Tampa Bay Rays, he's intent on keeping a similar lid on the Red Sox' payroll. That would be malpractice, given the resources at the Red Sox' disposal and would rightfully result in a revolt by the team's fan base.
But it's also evident that Bloom believes in efficient allocation of payroll, and as history has demonstrated, there's no more inefficient way to do business in MLB than to turn to free agency and throw money at players to address every single roster shortcoming.
All of which is to suggest it's wise to consider the big picture when the Red Sox get linked to every available free agent and remember that, especially at the time of year, not everything is as it might appear on Twitter.