The Boston Red Sox have had an especially difficult time signing top free agents in recent years. Their struggle has been exacerbated by the Los Angeles Dodgers snatching up every top target on the market.
After it signed Shohei Ohtani to a staggering $700 million deal last winter, LA has crafted something of a super team. Free agents are flocking to the Dodgers in hopes of netting a World Series for themselves, the most recent among their additions being Red Sox reliever target and former Padre Tanner Scott.
Scott signed a four-year, $72 million deal with Los Angeles on Jan. 19, and Boston was among the final contenders for the closer. It was reported by MLB insider Bob Nightengale on BlueSky — in a post that has since been deleted — that the Red Sox offered Scott more time and money than the Dodgers did.
Multiple Red Sox sources, including Rob Bradford of WEEI and Chris Cotillo of MassLive, refuted the claim that Boston out-bid Los Angeles for Scott and described the report as "very inaccurate." But the Sox would've had to bid more to have even the slightest chance of landing him.
Red Sox did not offer Tanner Scott more money than Dodgers, per multiple reports
Per source with knowledge of the negotiations, this is not accurate https://t.co/j9dtqb47iz
— Rob Bradford (@bradfo) January 19, 2025
The Dodgers have a leg-up in any free agent race as long as their roster is as stacked as it is. Unless a player is dead-set on playing elsewhere, no one would take a smaller salary to play for a worse team when LA's chances of repeating their 2024 success seem so likely.
Although it hasn't been confirmed, the Dodgers appear close to signing yet another top-tier pitcher in former Rangers reliever Kirby Yates. Boston also targeted Yates among its top reliever candidates and likely made another uninspiring bid with a super team in the race.
The Red Sox haven't met the market rate for highly coveted free agents in quite a while, but the reality is that they would have to beat the market to convince players to come to Boston while the Dodgers are as dominant as they're expected to be for the next few seasons or more. Losing out to the Dodgers isn't a valid excuse for the Red Sox's free agent whiffs, as they have more than enough money to match Los Angeles' recent spending.