Although the Boston Red Sox watched their season end at the hands of the New York Yankees in the Wild Card Series, the 2025 campaign was a step in the right direction.

Manager Alex Cora helped steer his squad to an 89-73 record, which was the organization’s first winning season since 2021. It was also Boston’s first trip to the postseason in four years. But with the offseason here in Beantown, the pressure will be on president of baseball operations Craig Breslow to build on the momentum this club created this season.

Breslow will have work to do on the offense, with potential needs at first base, third base, and designated hitter. One player who could help boost the offense is old friend Kyle Schwarber.

His four-year, $79 million deal with the Philadelphia Phillies just ended, and he’s entering the open market on the heels of a year in which he hit 56 home runs with 132 RBI. Could the Sox make a serious run at the left-handed slugger?

FanSided’s Zachary Rotman ranked six potential landing spots for Schwarber as he prepares for another trip into free agency. He ranked the Red Sox second on his list.

“You can have the opinion that trading Rafael Devers was the right long-term move for the Red Sox to have made, but that deal only makes sense if the Red Sox reinvest the money he was owed and find a way to make up for the offensive impact Devers provided,” Rotman wrote. “Signing Schwarber would kill both of those birds with one stone. He might not be the pure hitter Devers is, but I’d say Schwarber has more power, and he gets on base just as much as Devers.”

It helps that Schwarber is also familiar with playing at Fenway Park. He posted a .957 OPS with seven homers and 18 RBI in 41 games after being acquired by Boston at the 2021 trade deadline.

Rotman noted that Schwarber would make a lefty-heavy Boston lineup even more unbalanced, but there are other reasons to believe a reunion isn’t in the cards.

Spotrac projects Schwarber’s market value at four years and $99.6 million. With many teams in need of the pure power he provides, it’s not outrageous to think his final number will be higher. That’s a range Breslow probably won’t want to operate in for a designated hitter entering his mid-30s. Plus, the front office might be more focused on trying to bring third baseman Alex Bregman back.

The final – and probably most realistic – reason why Schwarber won’t head back to Beantown is the Phillies’ public desire to re-sign him. Team owner John Middleton was very direct about it in a July report from ESPN, saying, “We want to keep him.” And now that Philly’s season is over, Schwarber has also expressed his interest in staying.

More MLB: What Red Sox Could Include In Trade Package For Joe Ryan, Per Insider