Red Sox Analyst Identifies Pertinent Offseason Needs For Boston

The Red Sox started off the season well, but the final stretch showed Boston still needs an extra boost to reach its goals.

It will be an interesting offseason for chief baseball officer Craig Breslow. Manager Alex Cora was locked up this year, but Breslow and his staff must figure out which players fit best for the type of team the Red Sox want to be.

NESN Red Sox broadcaster Lou Merloni joined Tom Caron and Alex Speier on the "310 To Left" podcast to go over the ups and downs of Boston's season. Merloni laid down a list of what he would like to see the Red Sox do this upcoming offseason.

"It starts with the rotation. And like you said, you got to see where (Blake) Snell, (Corbin) Burnes, (Max) Fried -- another one that I like -- are at. I think they come in trades. You have too many lefties in the organization not just in the big leagues but the minor leagues. You just mentioned one guy in (Garrett) Crochet, who I would love here.

"... At some point they gotta realize you don't need five great pitchers because you need offense to go with it. It's the worst offense in baseball. Four great pitchers is good enough. Give up one of them. So I think there's gonna be some trades with the Red Sox. They need to get more right-handed. They need to get a couple more right-handed bats. To me, they have to get a stuff lefty, a legit lefty coming out of the bullpen."

Boston was linked to Snell last offseason, and Burnes was a speculated target for the Red Sox. Crochet also was a potential trade deadline addition, though Merloni pointed out that it wouldn't have been wise for any team to trade for the southpaw given his standing with the Chicago White Sox.

The Red Sox certainly could try to knock on those doors again while also trying to add more talent in much-needed areas. Merloni also acknowledged more decisions would need to be made if Roman Anthony or any other member of the "Big Four" make the leap to the majors.

It will be interesting to see what moves Breslow makes in his second year on the job.

To hear more of Merloni's conversation with Caron and Speier on "310 To Left," you can click on the Spotify and YouTube embeds above.