Why the Boston Red Sox Remain Interested in Adding Slugger J.D. Martinez
The Boston Red Sox are expected to be among baseball's elite next season, right up there with teams like the Houston Astros, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and their archrivals, the New York Yankees among others.
It is really hard to see the Red Sox suddenly turning into a mediocre team, but if there is something that could prevent them from turning into a true World Series contender, it could be their lack of power.
The Red Sox certainly have good hitters in the lineup like Mookie Betts and Dustin Pedroia, but they are missing that true slugger-type that can strike fear into the hearts of pitchers everywhere.
It is conceivable that young players like Andrew Benintendi and Rafael Devers can turn into power threats as they continue to develop, but the Red Sox are built to win now, and they would benefit immensely from having a masher in the middle of their lineup. This may also explain why they have been consistently linked to free agent J.D. Martinez.
Martinez is coming off of a season during which he walloped a total of 45 homeruns and slugged .690 overall, according to Baseball Reference. He is exactly the type of power hitter the Red Sox need, and they seem to understand that as well.
In a recent article, the Boston Globe's Nick Cafardo noted that the Red Sox "still have their eyes on Martinez" and they may even still have a five-year offer on the table for him.
Thus far at least, that reported offer is apparently not enough to get a deal done. However, with the season fast approaching, it is not difficult to imagine the Red Sox bumping that up to make sure that they have Martinez in the lineup right from opening day.
More news about the latest MLB free agency and trade rumors should be made available in the near future.
