What’s going to happen after the Alex Verdugo deal? Who the shit knows?

The offseason is still young but, with the Yankees having traded for Juan Soto, it already feels like it’s getting late for the Red Sox. Is that fair? Is it even true? The short answer is no. The long answer is also no. But the longer answer is… maybe?

Occam’s Razor suggests that the Red Sox replaced Chaim Bloom because they wanted someone more active than Bloom, but, as Dan asks in this week’s episode of the Monsters of Sox, maybe not? As Bryan asks, maybe the handful of people who turned down the job didn’t want to follow John Henry’s strict cost-cutting measures, and the Bloom/Craig Breslow shift represented little more than a shuffling of the deck chairs?

Maybe! But probably not, IMHO. As it is me, Bryan, who is writing this, I can say that I firmly believe that Breslow will be more active than Bloom, if not merely by definition by the hints he’s left so far. He has said, in the presence of microphones, that the Sox are seeking a starting pitcher and right fielder. His cards are on the table in a way Bloom’s never were. I consider that progress. Your mileage may very.

At the very least, the Juan Soto trade may have lit a fire under the the collective asses of the Red Sox’s brass, and Bryan (aka me) thinks this is a good thing while Dan, paying attention to things like “quality of opponent,” is not so sure, but the pair of relative olds can’t really remember a time the Bronx Bombers got one of the most likable players in the game, so there are mixed feelings all around. In Bryan’s case, it’s that it spurs the Sox to action, for which there is still time.

And that’s the thing: There’s still time. Shohei Ohtani hasn’t signed yet. The first domino hasn’t fallen. Soto got dealt but that trade felt like an inevitability. When things start to fall into their proper places, what becomes of the Sox? Will they be forced to overpay for a two-time Cy Young winner, and if so, would that even be so bad? Those questions — and more — are raised in the episode. It’s a good episode. But don’t take my word for it! Listen, like, subscribe, all that shit. Here ye go: