J.D. Martinez, this year’s top free agent, is headed to the MLB Winter Meetings in Orlando. When he arrives, he’s expected to meet with multiple teams, including the Boston Red Sox.
While signing Martinez would likely mean breaking up the young outfield of Mookie Betts, Jackie Bradley Jr., and Andrew Benintendi, the Red Sox are certainly a natural fit.
The Red Sox did win the American League East in 2017, but did so in spite of a rather powerless lineup. The Red Sox hit 168 home runs in 2017. That was the American League’s worst total and topped only the Atlanta Braves, Pittsburgh Pirates, and San Francisco Giants in all of baseball. Boston also had a .407 slugging percentage, which put them ahead of only the Los Angeles Angels, San Diego Padres, Pirates, and Giants.
Martinez, meanwhile, hit 45 home runs, trailing only Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge, and slugged at a league leading .690. Of course, with numbers like that, few teams could honestly say that adding Martinez wouldn’t make them better. His name will certainly be linked to many teams until he signs somewhere.