Everyone agrees that the Boston Red Sox need a new right-handed slugger. Who should that powerful righty be?

After letting Tyler O’Neill walk in free agency, the Red Sox have no right-handed hitters on the roster who popped 20 or more home runs in 2024. It’s a clear deficiency for an otherwise exciting lineup, and there are only a few worthy candidates on the open market to fill the vacancy.

Lately, it seems as though the search for the Red Sox is down to two: left fielder Teoscar Hernández, who hit 33 home runs for the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers, and third baseman Alex Bregman, who managed 26 home runs in a slight down year for the Houston Astros.

Bregman may be the easier one to go after, simply because of who the Red Sox seem to be competing against. The other main team in the running for the two-time All-Star, according to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com, is the middle-market Detroit Tigers.

Because of that seemingly lackluster competition, Zachary Rotman of FanSided recently predicted that the Red Sox would, in fact, land Bregman.

“The Red Sox have the money to spend, the ability to fit Bregman in a couple of different ways, and can make themselves legitimate AL East contenders by adding another big bat into the mix,” Rotman said.

“There’s always the chance that a mystery team can jump in and make things interesting, but if it’s really between Boston and Detroit, there’s no reason to believe that the Red Sox won’t end up getting him.”

Bregman just finished off a five-year, $100 million contract with the Astros, and indications out of Houston are that he’s looking for double that total on his next deal. So far, it doesn’t seem like that deal is out there for the 2024 Gold Glover, but if the Red Sox come close, their odds are good.

There’s little excuse for the Red Sox to be outgunned by the Tigers if they badly want to land somebody. If Bregman is that guy, he should be wearing a Boston uniform by New Year’s Day.

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