Red Sox Should Not Let Previous Signings Stop Pursuit Of This Reliever

The Boston Red Sox, among several needs, are in for a total bullpen makeover this winter.

The group faltered tremendously in the second half in each of the last two seasons. The two veteran mainstays in Kenley Jansen and Chris Martin went to free agency. Liam Hendriks makes his team debut off of Tommy John and Justin Slaten showed legitimate stuff in 2024.

Outside of that, there’s not a lot of certainly in the bullpen for Alex Cora, Andrew Bailey and company. That’s where Craig Breslow has the chance to get creative and build a group of “monsters” for the 2025 season for the Red Sox.

Boston already began addressing left-handed relief this offseason in search of upgrades for Brennan Bernardino, Cam Booser and Bailey Horn.

The Red Sox inked veteran Justin Wilson to a one-year deal and locked in another one with the reported signing of Aroldis Chapman earlier Monday.

There’s still another left-hander on the market that would completely solidify that back of the Red Sox bullpen with Hendriks and Slaten. That would be Tanner Scott. And no, the Wilson and Chapman signings should not scare Boston away for being too left-handed.

Scott isn’t a lefty specialist with a specific job. He’s a versatile, late-inning weapon that can get lefties and righties out. The reliever dominated for the Miami Marlins and the San Diego Padres. His fastball jumps on hitters, getting up to 99 MPH and an improved breaking ball gave elite lefties like Shohei Ohtani fits in October.

Scott could even step in as the closer if Hendriks and Slaten need to fill earlier roles or aren’t ready to close in 2025.

A backend trio of Scott, Hendriks and Slaten should exhilarate Cora if the Red Sox do find a way to get a deal done. With MLB’s Winter Meetings coming up next week, Boston should have the perfect chance to strike.