The Boston Red Sox are determined to stay the course, despite Gerrit Cole’s impending move to the New York Yankees.
Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom told ESPN’s Joon Lee on Wednesday the starting pitcher’s record-setting contract with the Yankees won’t change Boston’s roster-building strategy. Bloom has been in talks with other teams and he won’t allow the Yankees’ acquisition of Cole to disrupt those discussions.
“There’s a couple of fronts where we feel like we might be making some progress.” Bloom said. “… Especially in our division, you expect your rivals are going to make moves that are going to make them really good.”
Cole and the Yankees reportedly agreed to a record-setting, nine-year, $324 million contract Wednesday, and reports of the deal soon boosted New York into the ranks of 2020 World Series favorites.
The Red Sox haven’t made any significant roster moves since they hired Bloom in late October. Mookie Betts’ future remains Boston’s biggest offseason question, and Bloom and Co. are trying to address the issue as the world keeps turning and their rivals seemingly grow more powerful.
