Red Sox Nightmare Scenario With Mets, Blue Jays In Play

If the Boston Red Sox want to make a splash in free agency, they’re going to need to act quickly.

Boston just saw in the Alex Bregman sweepstakes that things are moving quickly across the league. The Red Sox missed on Bregman with a five-year, $175 million deal with the Chicago Cubs. As more details continue to trickle out about the negotiations, it's clear that the organization misplayed the Bregman sweepstakes. It's going to happen sometimes, but this is a high-profile miss. On Wednesday, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe added more fuel to the fire, noting that the club felt confident in their five-year, $165 million offer with a no-trade clause and held firm, not wanting to bid against themselves. Bregman got a better offer from the Cubs, and the Red Sox couldn't respond in the end.

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Since Bregman agreed to terms on his deal with Chicago, former Toronto Blue Jays infielder Bo Bichette has been heavily tied to the organization. But that doesn't mean that the Red Sox are going to get him. Bichette met with the Philadelphia Phillies earlier in the week. That's not even the nightmare scenario, though. Right now, the Red Sox are fighting an uphill battle with the Toronto Blue Jays and the New York Yankees in the American League East. With Bregman -- or Bichette -- the Red Sox arguably would be the top team in the AL East on paper. Without them, there's a legit chance that they are third with the Baltimore Orioles breathing down their neck.

The Red Sox can't sit around and wait

The Yankees reportedly are still trying to get Cody Bellinger back, so a big move could be coming soon. The Blue Jays are the big players of the offseason. They already landed Dylan Cease and Cody Ponce and retained Shane Bieber. Now, they're in the mix for Kyle Tucker and have a long-term offer on the table, per ESPN's Jesse Rogers. But the New York Mets have a short-term offer also on the table worth $50 million per year, per Rogers. Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported the Blue Jays are still in the mix for Bichette.

If the Red Sox want Bichette, they need to get moving. The Blue Jays have been the most prominent team linked to Tucker all offseason, but if he opts to join the Mets on the big-money, short-term deal, the most obvious next option for them would be retaining their homegrown star in Bichette. If Bichette returns to Toronto, he would put them even more over the top than they already are and risk another legit target not choosing Boston. The Red Sox were in the mix for Pete Alonso but misplayed the market and he's an Oriole now. Bichette could be another miss.

As long as Tucker is on the board and the Blue Jays have a chance at him, that likely will slow their pursuit of Bichette. But if he comes off the board and it's to any team other than the Blue Jays, Boston could be in trouble.

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