Red Sox looking for ‘front of a rotation’ starter via trade or free agency

LAS VEGAS — Adding a top of the rotation starting pitcher to slot in behind ace Garrett Crochet is a top priority for the Red Sox this offseason.

“I don’t think we’re going to spend a ton of time trying to add a No. 4, a No. 5 starter,” chief baseball officer Craig Breslow said at the GM Meetings here at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas on Monday. “If we’re going to make a starting pitching addition, I think it should be somebody who can pitch at the front of a rotation, start a playoff game for us.”

Brayan Bello pitched like a No. 2 starter for stretches during the 2025 season, but he went 1-3 with a 5.40 ERA in five starts during September. He recorded an out beyond the fifth inning in just one of those five starts, and he also lasted just 2 ⅓ innings in his Game 2 start of the AL Wild Card Series vs. the Yankees.

Lucas Giolito, who also pitched like a No. 2 at times last season, declined his mutual option to test free agency.

“Particularly someone that we feel like can pitch alongside or slot in behind Garrett and start a playoff game for us,” Breslow said. “Last season, Bello played that role for a majority of the season. Lucas played that role for a majority of the season. Because of the depth that we’ve built up over the last couple of years, we feel pretty good about just overall starting pitching. Kind of maybe Nos. 3ish through 10ish.”

The Red Sox made a run at acquiring Twins starter Joe Ryan at the 2025 trade deadline. Ryan is expected to be available again this offseason. Other potential starters who could be available via trade include the Brewers’ Freddy Peralta, Miami’s Edward Cabrera and the Nationals’ MacKenzie Gore.

Breslow said he will use the GM Meetings to get an idea of who is available via trade.

“That’s part of the conversations that take place right now,” Breslow said. “You have a pretty good idea of where teams are around the trade deadline and things change. Things change based on the way teams finish seasons, based on financial considerations, based on a whole host of factors. And so we’re … collecting information so that we can answer those questions more definitively.”

Framber Valdez, Ranger Suárez, Dylan Cease, Michael King, Chris Bassitt, Shota Imanaga, Merrill Kelly, Zac Gallen and Brandon Woodruff are among the top free agent starting pitchers.

“We’ll see what the trade and free agent markets dictate,” Breslow said. “There are compelling opportunities in both we think. We also are mindful of while believe we’re in a window to contend and to compete for the postseason, World Series championships, we’re also mindful of keeping one eye on the future.”

Valdez, Suárez, Cease, King, Gallen, Imanaga and Woodruff all received qualifying offers, which means the signing team would need to give up draft pick compensation.

The Red Sox’ 2025 payroll exceeded the $241 million CBT base threshold. And so if Boston were to sign one of those starters, it would forfeit its second-highest and fifth-highest draft selections in the 2026 MLB Draft and have its international signing bonus pool for the next signing period reduced by $1 million.