Red Sox Reportedly Making Progress Toward Deal After Strong Meeting

The Boston Red Sox have spent most of the offseason sitting back while the rest of the American League East continues to build upon their already superior rosters.

Everyone has waited for Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow to make a splash in his first season at the helm of baseball operations. Thus far, media and fans alike have been highly disappointed as Boston continues to operate frugally for reasons unknown. 

With that said, some believe that Breslow could be close to landing a deal for one of the top starters in free agency -- filling by far the biggest need on the roster.

"One National League executive yesterday said 'we hear the Red Sox and Scott Boras had a good meeting recently and may get some deal eventually done on Jordan Montgomery,'" longtime Red Sox pundit Peter Gammons revealed Monday.

The report comes on the heels of ESPN's Buster Olney reporting that the Red Sox had a Zoom meeting with Montgomery recently. 

Montgomery posted a 3.20 ERA with a 166-to-48 strikeout-to-walk ratio, .247 batting average against and 1.19 WHIP in 188 2/3 innings between his time with the St. Louis Cardinals and the Texas Rangers last season.

The 31-year-old would become the Red Sox's No. 1 starter and notably improve a club that only feels a few pieces away from playoff contention -- though Boston will need some younger guys to take a step up in 2024. 

Montgomery has always appeared to be a slam-dunk addition for Boston so it's nice to see that there appears to be some momentum building over the last couple of days.

With star outfielder and Boras client Cody Bellinger finally accepting a shorter-term deal with opt-outs, we could see Montgomery finally lower his asking price and try again in a year or two.