Buster Olney seems to think the Red Sox will make a big move this offseason ... but not for a good reason. He believes they have "no choice."
Olney offered his daring opinion at the bottom of an ESPN article about bold predictions for the rest of the offseason. His thoughts seem too good to be true.
It's been a few years since the Red Sox have made any significant moves that showed any commitment to winning games (outside of signing Rafael Devers to a long-term extension). Olney mentioned Fenway Sports Group's chairman Tom Werner's promise that the team would be going "full throttle" this offseason.
He suggested fans will use those words against him if he doesn't meet his promise, which they already are.
A bold Red Sox prediction from @Buster_ESPN: pic.twitter.com/HOWS6GPWH5
— Boston Sports Gordo (@BOSSportsGordo) January 11, 2024
Boston hasn't given fans anything to build faith on. Claiming to be "in" on players while offering a pitiful excuse for a contract can hardly be considered "full throttle." The Fenway Faithful don't believe the Red Sox will make any serious moves because they have no reason to — bidding war after bidding war, they come up empty only to find out the effort was half-hearted in the first place.
Olney's words are the icing on the cake for a defeated fanbase. He highlights Jordan Montgomery and Blake Snell are still available in the free agency and Sox fans are all too aware. They've been jonesing for Boston to sign Montgomery all offseason long, just to receive conflicting reports about the team's interest in the hurler over and over again.
ESPN's Buster Olney thinks the Red Sox are going to spend big this offseason
MassLive's Sean McAdam reported Montgomery is too pricey for Boston's budget. If that's true, the team's interest in Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto had to have been a front. It also means the Red Sox's budget is embarrassingly small for one of the biggest markets in MLB.
Some fans are holding out hope that Olney's prediction comes true. Others aren't as optimistic, and they don't have a real reason to be.
If Olney does turn out to be right, and the Red Sox put out a roster that's worth the price of admission to Fenway Park, he should predict that they'll win the World Series next. Because that would be the next extremely unlikely thing to possibly happen, right?