Josh Hader Odds: Where Red Sox Stand In MLB Next-Team Market

The biggest goal for the Boston Red Sox this offseason should be to improve the team’s starting pitching. But if that proves to be difficult, the next item on the check list should be to improve the staff as a whole, including the bullpen.

Josh Hader, who is widely considered the top closer on the market, would go a long way in doing that even after Boston’s bullpen impressed in 2023.

The 29-year-old left-hander, who spent the 2023 campaign with the Padres, was extended a qualifying offer by San Diego but rejected it last week in pursuit of a multi-year contract this offseason.

Could the Red Sox try to make a run at the powerful lefty reliever? Oddsmakers at DraftKings Sportsbook listed Boston tied for the fifth-best odds to sign the five-time MLB All-Star, who tallied a 1.28 ERA in 61 games last season.

The Red Sox were 10-1 and well behind the favored Texas Rangers (+290) as of Thursday.

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Here is a full list of Hader’s next-team odds:

Texas Randers +290
Philadelphia Phillies +600
Los Angeles Dodgers +750
Los Angeles Angels +800
New York Yankees +900
San Diego Padres +1000
New York Mets +1000
Boston Red Sox +1000
Baltimore Orioles +1000
Atlanta Braves +1100
Field +1200
Houston Astros +1200
Tampa Bay Rays +1500
Chicago Cubs +1500

The three-time National League Reliever of the Year surely won’t come cheap. In the MLB Trade Rumors Top 50 Free Agent list, it was projected Hader could command a six-year deal worth $110 million. It would be the largest free-agent contract ever signed by a reliever, per MLB.com.

The World Series champion Rangers have been heavily linked to Hader while the Phillies, as portrayed by the betting odds, also are viewed as a top candidate.

Philadelphia on Sunday reportedly opened up the checkbook for starting pitcher Aaron Nola, though, which might cause some to question its pursuit of Hader.