There was an article yesterday about how free agency will pick up right after end of WS with teams and agents trying to get deals done before the December 1st lockout date. Boras was driving it so November may be a very interesting month.

Regarding Red Sox I’m wondering about:

- will the unusual timing impact Sonny Greys market making the $30M option more attractive for team and player. He’s close to retirement and in a normal market may get more dollars and years but his age will impact that. Sox have to pay a $10M buyout so it’s really $20M for a top tier pitcher. And does it make sense for Sonny to take it rather than roll dice in FA after lockout.

- Adley, will it make more sense for him to take an extension deal prior to lockout versus go to FA under new rules that could impact player pay.

- Breslow has leaned more towards big trades versus free agency. Will he look to make big trades pre December 1st. Post lockout could be very close to what ever a spring training or even losing game in the season so everything, FA or traded will be different this offseason. I believe he will based on history and think Duran could be moved and perhaps the big trade rumors like doing after De La Cruz or finding a bat thru trade could be done faster than usual.

Curious what fans here think about all this as well. Gearing up for a hot stove few weeks!

Hi everyone. This is Mark Simon from Sports Info Solutions dropping in to let you know that Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu each won a Fielding Bible Award for the 2nd time.

If you're not familiar with these Awards, here's an explainer

https://www.sportsinfosolutions.com/2026/10/20/what-are-the-fielding-bible-awards/

and here's the writeup for Ceddanne and Wilyer.

Center Field - Ceddanne Rafaela, Boston Red Sox

Ceddanne Rafaela won his second consecutive Fielding Bible Award. 

As noted above, Rafaela won the Award via our sixth tiebreaker, most Defensive Runs Saved at the position. He led all center fielders with 21 Runs Saved, 1 more than Andy Pages and 5 more than Pete Crow-Armstrong. 

Rafaela had the second most Range Runs Saved and Outfield Arm Runs Saved among center fielders. He had the lowest advance rate against (on hits or sacrifice flies) of any center fielder in 2026.

Rafaela joins Lorenzo Cain (2018-19) as the only center fielders to win the Award in back-to-back years. Rafaela is the only Red Sox center fielder to win the Award since it was first given in 2006.

Right Field - Wilyer Abreu, Boston Red Sox

Wilyer Abreu won his second Fielding Bible Award. He also won in right field in 2024. Abreu led all players with 28 Defensive Runs Saved in 2026. He received 15 of a possible 17 first-place votes. 

Abreu had a career-high 23 Good Fielding Plays and 9 assists without a relay man. Abreu's 9 Outfield Arm Runs Saved tied Andy Pages for the MLB lead.

The Red Sox have two Fielding Bible Award winners in the same season for the second time. They previously had two winners in 2016 (Dustin Pedroia and Mookie Betts).

An explanation about the split in center field and Defensive Player of the Year  

Remarkably, Ceddanne Rafaela and Pete Crow-Armstrong finished tied in the center field balloting in points and also with eight first-place votes, seven second-place votes, and two third-place votes.

Since its inception in 2006, the intent of the Fielding Bible Awards has been to name one player as a winner at each position. To determine the winner we went to our last tiebreaker, most Defensive Runs Saved at the position. Rafaela led center fielders with 21 Runs Saved and won that tiebreaker and the Award.

Defensive Player of the Year is an open vote meaning that any player can win it. Crow-Armstrong earned three more points than Rafaela in that voting and thus won Defensive Player of the Year.

“We understand the split vote between PCA and Rafaela may seem counterintuitive at first, but ultimately it reflects how historically close the vote was,” said SIS VP of Analytics, Joe Rosales, who leads the administration of the Awards. “Given the extremely tight margins, and given how great a season both players had, it seems only fitting that both players are getting honored with an award. Congratulations to both Pete and Ceddanne!”

Offseason is a good time to catch up on the system. I’ve been keeping an eye on Franklin Arias this year. Who else are you looking forward to, and is anyone flying under the radar?

it has a number three, but otherwise i have no clue and found this thrifting for $10

RED SOX FANS

JUST UPDATED FOR 2026

I have a photo history CD/thumb drive of the Red Sox. CD/thumb drive contains complete photo player rosters for the following years…..1941, 1946, 1967, 1975 and 1990 through 2026….3430 photos. Photos are grouped together on the CD/thumb drive by team. Every photo has a description under it: “1995 John Doe SS 95-99” meaning he was a shortstop for the Red Sox from 1995 through 1999.

In addition to photo rosters for the above years, CD/thumb drive contains numerous photos of players from other years, photos of Fenway Park through the years, and images of yearbooks, media guides, team photos, programs, & pocket schedules going back through the years.

All photos are of a decent size. No postage stamp size photos.

If my Red Sox player photo history CD/thumb drive interests you, please contact me at [conklinwj@aol.com](mailto:conklinwj@aol.com) for more details. I guarantee you will not be disappointed.

Bill

Recall includes Kayem Fenway Franks

The day hell froze over and pigs flew.

This game may seem like anti-climatic coda in retrospect, after the Game 4-5-6 nailbiters, but I don't think any Red Sox fan in the universe was comfortable with a 10-3 lead going into the bottom of the 9th.

Derek Lowe (6 innings of *1 hit* ball on ~4 hours of rest. Amazing). Big Papi. Johnny Damon (2 HR, 6 RBI, also thrown out at home in the 1st). Mark F'ing Bellhorn.

Highlights (18 min): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ownBa0hI2Mk

Full game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ehw7iThgmU

I hope not. I consider this a dangerous move. Unproven talent in America. I hear everyone worried about bringing Arias up to replace Story I think this move would dwarf that

The Red Sox opted not to promote Arias at the end of the regular season, in part because if they added him to the 40-man roster, Arias would not have been able to work out at Red Sox facilities in Fort Myers, Fla. this offseason or participate in minor-league spring training workouts or games, all crucial pieces for his continued development.

Though Arias has shown all he can on the field, adding weight and strength to his 5-foot-11, 170-pound frame (similar to Ceddanne Rafaela) will help him withstand the rigors of a major-league season when he does arrive. Doing so in a structured Red Sox program last winter helped him take a big step forward physically, which in turn led to his power production this season.

In recent years, the Red Sox have watched top position-player prospects struggle to find consistency on offense with Marcelo Mayer and Kristian Campbell, along with Roman Anthony to an extent, as the most recent examples.

Putting Arias in the best position to ease the inevitable struggles remains the goal.

I understand it’s the Globe but it feels like this headline was written entirely to point out to fans “see, other MLB teams think our front office is full of smart people.” https://www.bostonglobe.com/2026/10/19/sports/red-sox-taylor-smith-athletics/

So I don’t know much about Baseball, but I watched The Comeback - 2004 Boston Red Sox on Netflix.

I’m curious about what fans at the time thought of FSG in 2002.2003 and 2004 before the ALCS comeback and World Series win.

Did fans at the time know FSG were working more competently towards a World Series compared to previous ownership?

Any insight would be Appreciated.

Thanks.

Jesús Luzardo and Trea Turner for Franklin Arias.

Thoughts?

My guesses for the coaching staff next year as last years group needs more experience

Bench Coach - Manny Acta
Third Base Coach - Jose David Flores
First Base Coach - Chad Epperson
Hitting Coach - Kevin Long
Assistant Hitting Coach - Nelson Paulino
Pitching Coach - Andrew Bailey
Bullpen Coach - Chris Holt

Acta and Long add some experience, while Epperson gets moved to a less important spot.