The Boston Red Sox seemed to make the most of their time at the MLB Winter Meetings in Dallas this week.
Constant rumors swirled around the Red Sox going after star players and they even pulled off a couple of trades, including one for a premier starting pitcher. Boston entered the festivities with a mission in mind, and while it's not mission accomplished yet, the Red Sox sure laid a good foundation to build off of the rest of the winter.
So, without further ado, here are six quick Red Sox takeaways after a busy Winter Meetings:
Check major box from offseason to-do list
The Red Sox entered the Winter Meetings in need of a frontline starting pitcher. And they made sure to leave Dallas with one in hand. It took a trade with the Chicago White Sox to get it done as they acquired 25-year-old left-hander Garrett Crochet. Crochet fills a major void as Boston can pencil him into the top of its rotation for at least the next two seasons and possibly longer than that.
Another starting pitcher would cement rotation
While on the topic of starting pitcher, adding Crochet obviously gives the Red Sox a good starting staff -- he joins Tanner Houck, Brayan Bello, Lucas Giolito and Kutter Crawford. But obtaining another top-tier starter would give Boston one of the best rotations in the league. The Red Sox have been linked to Corbin Burnes and reportedly were "readying" an offer to him Tuesday night. Burnes and Crochet at the top of the rotation would rival any team's top two starters. And even if they miss out on Burnes, acquiring Jack Flaherty, Walker Buehler or Rosi Sasaki would be a big boost to the staff.
Red Sox shouldn't be done
There still feels like there is at least one more major move for the Red Sox to make. They haven't handed out a big contract yet as Crochet is expected to make around $3 million for the 2025 season. Perhaps they can throw a ton of money at Burnes or even take on a sizable contract like Nolan Arenado. Adding a couple more key pieces would truly vault the Red Sox into a playoff team.
Different approach under Craig Breslow
The Red Sox took an aggressive approach with chief baseball officer Craig Breslow in charge. Unlike his predecessor in Chaim Bloom, Breslow took from the farm system to add to the major league roster as he traded four prospects, including Kyle Teel, for Crochet. That's a trade Bloom would have shut down in an instant. Breslow also sent away another prospect in exchange for a potential backup catcher in a deal with the Yankees. As previously mentioned, there are still moves for Breslow to make and if he can pull them off, it will be a terrific offseason for him.
Major players once again
The Red Sox could have sat out the Juan Soto sweepstakes entirely, but they choose not to. Sure, they didn't come close to the 15-year, $765 million contract the 26-year-old outfielder took from the New York Mets, but it has to say something that their final offer for Soto reportedly was around $700 million. The Red Sox also were linked to several big-name stars, whether it was Soto, Burnes, Arenado or free agent infielder Alex Bregman.
Hot stove heats up Red Sox-Yankees rivalry
The bitter rivals engaged in a good ole fashioned race already for a standout pitcher, harkening back to the early 2000s when the two sides would go back and forth in free agency. The Yankees won the first go around by handing Max Fried an eight-year, $218 million to beat out the Red Sox for the veteran left-hander. It appears that won't end the Red Sox and Yankees battling it out for free agents. They reportedly are both in on Bregman. It's always nice throw a log on the rivalry in the middle of December.