At their year-end press conference in late September, members of Red Sox leadership said the wait had gone on long enough, and the time to get back in the game was now. It was a more pronounced statement of intent than in recent offseasons,

The Yankees and Mets won’t be the only teams chasing star outfielder Juan Soto this offseason. While the New York teams are widely considered the favorites to sign Soto to what will be a mammoth contract — which could be the longest in MLB history — the Toronto Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox are also major players,