The Boston Red Sox have some decisions to make.
The Red Sox officially are in offseason mode after being eliminated in the American League Championship Series by the Houston Astros in six games and now are turning their focus to 2022.
Boston's roster may not look exactly the same to open next season with two of the biggest question marks at the moment being J.D. Martinez and Kyle Schwarber.
Martinez has the decision in his hands holding a player option worth $19,350,000 heading into next season. The clock is ticking, as he has five days after the conclusion of the World Series to make up his mind.
Schwarber, on the other hand, is an unrestricted free agent, but most certainly has left the door open on a return to Boston.
Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom fielded questions from reporters Monday afternoon and addressed the possibility of having both sluggers back on the squad.
"We like them both. We have to look at it all obviously," Bloom said. "The offseason can unfold in different ways and both guys obviously play the outfield as well. So there's different ways that this can unfold. I think talent is talent. There's a lot of different ways to get where we want to go and we just need to weigh all of the benefits and trade-offs of any configuration."
Both Martinez and Schwarber filled outfield and designated hitting roles, but the Schwarber's ability to quickly learn first base gave the lineup more flexibility. Bloom seemed to like what he saw with Schwarber and Martinez both in the lineup down the stretch.
"We played some of our best baseball in that alignment and that was with Kyle learning the position on the fly, and I think we saw him get better as time went on and have a pretty good sense of humor about it too," he said. "Both guys are really talented players. "
It's anyone's guess what will happen, but the Red Sox have some time to work out these questions before free agency begins.
