As spring training inches closer, the Boston Red Sox find themselves staring down a familiar reality: a roster that looks a whole lot like last year’s - and not in the way fans were hoping.
Despite a flurry of offseason activity, Boston's infield picture remains murky. The trade market has dried up for some of their top targets.
Ketel Marte is staying put, talks for Isaac Paredes haven’t gained traction, and the asking price for young Cubs infielders like Matt Shaw or Nico Hoerner appears sky-high. Translation: the Red Sox may have missed their window to land a significant upgrade, and they’re running out of time to make a splash before camp opens.
And with Eugenio Suárez - the last of the notable free-agent infielders - now off the board after signing with the Reds, the Red Sox are left looking inward. According to multiple insiders, the most likely scenario now involves shifting top prospect Marcelo Mayer to third base and platooning Romy Gonzalez and David Hamilton at second. That’s not exactly the kind of infield alignment that screams "contender," especially considering the team’s offseason rhetoric about making meaningful improvements.
To be fair, Boston did make a move to bolster the corner with the addition of Willson Contreras at first base. But even that splash doesn’t fully mask the uncertainty up the middle.
One trade that’s starting to look increasingly questionable? Sending Vaughn Grissom to the Los Angeles Angels. That deal, made to clear space in the Triple-A infield, now feels like a misstep given how thin the big-league depth chart looks.
Grissom, of course, was originally acquired in the December 2023 Chris Sale trade - a deal that, in hindsight, has tilted heavily in Atlanta’s favor. Sale went on to win the National League pitching Triple Crown and his first Cy Young Award with the Braves. Grissom, meanwhile, spent most of 2024 either on the injured list or trying to find his rhythm in Worcester.
But here’s the thing: Grissom might’ve been the best internal option the Red Sox had at second base heading into 2026.
Yes, his first season in Boston was derailed by injuries and a tough stretch at the plate. But when healthy, he showed promise. He slashed .270/.342/.441 in Triple-A last year - numbers that, while not eye-popping, certainly suggest a player with more offensive upside than David Hamilton, who hit just .198/.257/.333 in 91 big-league games.
Even more puzzling was the decision not to give Grissom a late-season look when Mayer went down with a season-ending wrist injury in July. Instead of calling up Grissom, the Sox turned back to Hamilton, who had recently been designated for assignment. It was a curious move, especially considering Grissom’s bat and his defensive edge over alternatives like Kristian Campbell and Hamilton.
Now, with Grissom gone, the Red Sox are left with a second base platoon of Gonzalez and Hamilton - a pairing that feels more like a stopgap than a solution. Gonzalez has shown flashes, but the ceiling for that duo is limited. Grissom and Gonzalez, on the other hand, could’ve formed a more balanced tandem, with Grissom’s bat giving the lineup some much-needed depth.
Instead, Boston’s infield shuffle continues, and the margin for error is shrinking. With camp just days away, the front office may have to hope that internal options can rise to the occasion - because the external ones are quickly disappearing.