Top Remaining MLB Free Agents Including Some Red Sox Fits

The biggest domino in MLB free agency fell over the weekend, and it shouldn’t be long before the Red Sox and the rest of baseball follow suit.

Shohei Ohtani is officially off the market. The two-way superstar isn’t going far after signing an unprecedented, record-breaking 10-year, $700 million deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The free agent market, which had been moving at a glacial pace, should pick up steam now that the best player in the world has made his decision.

Here’s where top of the market stands, based on the 12 best players from MLB Trade Rumors’ top 50 free agents.

Shohei Ohtani (Dodgers)
Cody Bellinger
Yoshinobu Yamamoto
Blake Snell
Aaron Nola (Phillies)
Jordan Montgomery
Matt Chapman
Josh Hader
Sonny Gray (Cardinals)
Shota Imanaga
Eduardo Rodriguez (Diamondbacks)
Teoscar Hernandez

So, what now for the Red Sox? Here’s a little deeper rundown of the best players still available for Craig Breslow to potentially scoop up.

PITCHERS

RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto
Ohtani isn’t the only Japanese-born phenom about to cash in on the open market. Yamamoto couldn’t have made the move from Japan at a better time. The 25-year-old looks like could instantly be one of the majors’ best starting pitchers, and he’ll get paid accordingly. Ohtani signing might have increased his value even more with a handful of teams — reportedly including the Red Sox — who missed out on Ohtani shifting their attention to his countryman — even if he is unproven at this level.

LHP Jordan Montgomery
If it’s a dependable arm who can log big innings Breslow covets, you could do a lot worse than Montgomery. He doesn’t have the ceiling of, say, reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell, but the world champion is a proven workhorse. The southpaw has logged at least 157 innings over the last three seasons, increasing his workload every year, including an impressive walk year in which he posted a career-best 3.20 ERA with a 1.094 FIP in 188 2/3 innings.

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HITTERS

C Mitch Garver
The Red Sox don’t necessarily need to add a catcher, especially if they believe in Connor Wong’s ability to be a starter. For as good as Wong has looked in his Red Sox run, he hasn’t really come close to matching the production of Garver, who is coming off a 19-home run season in just 87 games for the Rangers. Garver exploded in 2019 when he hit 31 dingers in just 93 games, and he has 44 round-trippers in fewer than 900 plate appearances since then, an average of about 30 over a 162-game sample. The Red Sox did already add some right-handed pop by trading for Tyler O’Neill, but Garver could certainly help further in that regard at an affordable price.

2B Whit Merrifield
It’s been a few years since Merrifield was one of the most underrated infielders in the game. Between 2017 and 2022, he led the majors in hits twice, doubles once, triples once and stolen bases three times. Breslow has expressed a desire to get better up the middle, and while Merrifield’s defensive metrics aren’t spectacular, he’d be a considerable upgrade. His ability to play the outfield helps, too. He’s just a solid baseball player, especially for a team just looking to add talent, apparently including the Red Sox.

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