Rumors have recently surged about the Boston Red Sox going after Jordan Montgomery in free agency. The Sox have been named as an ideal fit for the 2023 World Series champion all offseason and are only just (seemingly) beginning to take their pursuit seriously.
Or, so fans thought. A recent report from MassLive's Chris Cotillo could reveal what fans already knew about Boston's spending habits.
Fans have voiced frustrations that the Red Sox organization and ownership group have a lot of money that they've been hesitant to use for the betterment of the club. An unnamed agent recently came out in agreement with fans' statements.
Per Cotillo, one agent said he's "never seen them so hamstrung" — historically, the Red Sox weren't ones to act like they were strapped for cash. Even agents are noticing that the organization has undergone a dramatic shift in priorities, even from a NON-ROSTER INVITEE perspective!
While Red Sox continue to look at ways to upgrade roster, even with minor league deals, frustrations continue from agents. One this week: “I’ve never seen them this hamstrung and haggling even over NRI numbers.“
— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) February 26, 2024
The change in the Red Sox organization probably goes back to the Mookie Betts trade. Since that fateful day in 2020, Boston has become more concerned with saving money rather than with signing top-tier talent. Since then, the Sox have also let Xander Bogaerts and Justin Turner walk. Two high-end free agents wanted to be in Boston, but the organization refused to pay up.
The Red Sox have become so tight that the running theme of the offseason was the front office making embarrassingly low offers to potential free-agent targets. The highest profile among them was Teoscar Hernández, who will be making $23.5 million this coming season with the Dodgers.
Boston offered Hernández two years at $14 million per — the same amount of money he was making in Seattle to play for a better club with better talent around him. No one in their right mind would play for the Red Sox for $14 million a year when the Dodgers would double the salary and team members get to play alongside Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
An unnamed agent suggests he's never seen the Red Sox front office so cheap before
The Sox haggling over non-roster invitee deal numbers is especially concerning. The smallest deals are garnering resistance from the front office, which has relentlessly hyped up its farm system and young prospects.
Many fans have postulated that the agent who offered this quote to Cotillo is Scott Boras, Montgomery's representative. While that has no basis, it's possible Boras is upset with the offers Boston has been making to Montgomery. If fans know anything about the Sox's offseason plans, it was to spend as little money as possible, which is not Boras' idea of a successful signing, given that he's managing the most expensive free agents on the market.
The rumors about the Sox pursuing Montgomery are exactly that. They've given fans little other optimism to work with this offseason and it's understandable if not all of Red Sox Nation believes the front office's efforts are genuine.
Hopefully, all the haggling the front office is doing is to save money on smaller signings to give it all to Montgomery. The Red Sox need him more than he needs them. But even so, that feels like a cheap excuse to pay for a top name in free agency.