Ken Rosenthal Hints at Boston Red Sox’s Final Offseason Move

Ken Rosenthal may have said the quiet part out loud on Fair Territory late last week. And in doing so, he sharpened the picture of where the Red Sox believe this roster is still incomplete:

“Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic, my colleague there, wrote that the Red Sox really would prefer to play Marcelo Mayer at third and then get a second baseman - some kind of option there, a good defender who could really kind of round out their team. They've got one big move left in them, I believe. And if they do that, people will point toward Nico Hoerner. I don't know that the Cubs are going to trade Nico Hoerner. Brendan Donovan is also out there in a trade. But the Red Sox don't necessarily want to go left handed at that position, they're pretty left handed as it is. So there are a lot of interesting things still to come.”

That framing matters, because it aligns almost perfectly with how Boston’s offseason has unfolded to this point - aggressive on the mound, calculated with the bats, and still unfinished.

The Red Sox didn’t spend the winter pretending pitching alone would solve everything, but they clearly made it the priority. Sonny Gray and Ranger Suarez stabilized a rotation that had too many question marks, and the depth additions suggest a front office trying to reduce volatility over 162 games.

What they haven’t done is meaningfully reshape the everyday lineup beyond Willson Contreras - a move that improved contact and toughness but didn’t fundamentally change the lineup’s balance.

That’s where Rosenthal’s reporting hits home.

The Red Sox aren’t just “looking for a bat.” They’re trying to finish a puzzle.

Internally, they see Marcelo Mayer as a third baseman long-term - not because he can’t play shortstop, but because his bat profiles as one that should live in the middle of the order. That move, however, creates a new problem:

Second base becomes the hinge point of the entire roster.

The player they add there has to defend, hit right-handed, and bring stability - not necessarily star power - to a lineup that already leans left and already carries volatility in the outfield.

That’s why Nico Hoerner keeps coming up.

He fits the exact description Rosenthal laid out:

Elite defender, right-handed bat, playoff-caliber reliability.

And it’s also why the Cubs’ willingness (or lack thereof) to move him matters more than Boston’s desire.

Brendan Donovan checks many of the same boxes, but the handedness concern is real, especially for a team that already risks being matchup-dependent late in games.

The key line in Rosenthal’s comments might be the simplest one:

“They’ve got one big move left in them.”

That suggests discipline. It suggests Boston isn’t interested in splurging for splurging’s sake or chasing redundancy. It also suggests urgency. Not desperation, but clarity.

The Red Sox know what they are right now:

A team built to pitch, defend, and survive the division, but one that could become overly reliant on young bats like Roman Anthony if they don’t round out the lineup.

If this truly is the final swing of the offseason, it won’t be flashy. It’ll be functional.

And if it’s done right, it’ll be the move that makes everything else make sense.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION:

Remember to join our RED SOX on ROUNDTABLE community, which is FREE! You can post your own thoughts, in text or video form, and you can engage with our Roundtable staff, as well as other Red Sox fans. If prompted to download the Roundtable APP, that's free too!

Tom Carroll is a contributor for Roundtable, with boots-on-the-ground coverage of all things Boston sports. He's a senior digital content producer for WEEI.com, and a native of Lincoln, RI.