{"id":146510,"date":"2026-01-29T06:58:13","date_gmt":"2026-01-29T06:58:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=146510"},"modified":"2026-01-29T06:58:13","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T06:58:13","slug":"red-sox-linked-to-intriguing-world-series-winning-free-agent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=146510","title":{"rendered":"Red Sox Linked to Intriguing World Series Winning Free Agent"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"post-featured-container-id\">\n<div id=\"post-featured\">\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2155353329-1-e1761684317412.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=760\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 820px) 95vw, 780px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2155353329-1-e1761684317412.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=760 780w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2155353329-1-e1761684317412.jpg?quality=45&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1100 1100w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2155353329-1-e1761684317412.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1350 1350w\" alt=\"Red Sox Linked to Intriguing World Series Winning Free Agent\" width=\"760\" height=\"426\" \/><\/figure>\n<div>\n<p>Getty<\/p>\n<p>Boston Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>It felt like the Boston Red Sox\u2019s\u00a0plan this winter was to wait out third baseman Alex Bregman like they did last winter. However, when the dust settled on this year\u2019s decision, Bregman opted not to return to the Red Sox, instead joining the Chicago Cubs.<\/p>\n<p>Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow clearly didn\u2019t have a backup plan in place. He quickly pivoted to Philadelphia Phillies left-handed pitcher Ranger Su\u00e1rez. That does not fill the need at third base. Boston is still looking for Bregman\u2019s replacement.<\/p>\n<p>As far as other positions go, the Red Sox are still in need of a backup catcher behind Carlos Narv\u00e1ez, who had a good first full season in Boston. However, Breslow would be wise to add a veteran backup. There are some still available in free agency, and a former World Series champion was linked to them.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Boston Red Sox List a Fit For Rangers Free Agent Catcher Jonah Heim<\/h2>\n<p>In November, Jonah Heim was one of two key Texas Rangers players, along with Adolis Garc\u00eda, who were non-tendered. They became free agents, and Garc\u00eda found a new home with the Phillies. Heim is still looking for a job. Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report believes he would be a good fit for the Red Sox.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDanny Jansen (TEX) and Victor Caratini (MIN) have landed two-year deals to serve in platoon roles, while J.T. Realmuto re-upped with the Phillies on a three-year, $45 million deal, but overall it has been a slow-moving market for catchers,\u201d Reuter wrote. Heim is not far removed from starting the 2023 All-Star Game, but his numbers have been down the last two years.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sure, Heim\u2019s stats have been down, but he\u2019s still a very serviceable backup. He slashed .213\/.271\/.332 for Texas in 2025 with 11 home runs and 43 RBIs. During the Rangers\u2019 2023 World Series run, he hit three home runs and drove in eight runs in 17 games. Heim was a key part of the Texas October run.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Why Jonah Heim Fits the Boston Red Sox<\/h2>\n<p>There is a little red flag given Heim\u2019s downward spiral with his stats, but he wouldn\u2019t be brought in to be the everyday catcher. He would be a solid backup to Narv\u00e1ez. More importantly, his work behind the plate should not go unnoticed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNow that Realmuto and Caratini have finally signed, Heim and El\u00edas D\u00edaz represent the best available catchers. Heim\u2019s 68 home runs over the last five years rank 10th among all catchers, and he does a good job handling the pitching staff,\u201d Reuter wrote.<\/p>\n<p>Reuter also believes that the Houston Astros, San Diego Padres, and Tampa BayRays are fits. Of those teams, the Red Sox would need to worry about the Astros for Heim. Houston is in dire need of a backup, and plucking Heim from their in-state rivals would be something.<\/p>\n<p>Has this offseason been good enough for Breslow to say he will compete in the loaded American League East? The Toronto Blue Jays had some big changes, the New York Yankees brought back Cody Bellinger, and the Baltimore Orioles landed Pete Alonso in free agency. Heim would not move the needle in terms of winning the AL East. He would, however, fill a big need that Breslow and the Red Sox have.<\/p>\n<p>Scott Roche Scott Roche covers college football, NFL, NBA and MLB for Heavy.com and has three decades of sports writing, covering everything from college to professional sports. More about Scott Roche<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Getty Boston Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow It felt like the Boston Red Sox\u2019s\u00a0plan this winter was to wait out third baseman Alex Bregman like&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":146518,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-146510","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Red Sox Linked to Intriguing World Series Winning Free Agent - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=146510\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Red Sox Linked to Intriguing World Series Winning Free Agent - 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