Red Sox Pitcher Sees Boston Going ‘Full Metal’ In Juan Soto Pursuit

The Red Sox are among several teams on the hunt for free-agent star outfielder Juan Soto and after a three-hour meeting with the 26-year-old, one current roster member envisions Boston going all in this offseason.

Liam Hendriks, entering his second season with the Red Sox, spoke on behalf of the franchise amid its ongoing pursuit of Soto — after speaking highly of the four-time All-Star. Without offering any concrete details, Hendriks hinted at Boston’s approach from what he’s seen and heard from afar.

“How many times is a guy of Juan Soto’s caliber come up, at his age, in the free agent market?” Hendriks told “Foul Territory” with Todd Frazier. “And when you’ve got pockets enough to delve into it, you may as well check it out, you may as well do your due diligence. He’s a generational player that you can build around. I don’t think there’s anybody that stops him in the lineup. You may as well try and go out there to meet him and see what his demands are and see if it aligns with where we’re going. From all I know, we’re going full metal and hopefully, we can make those big moves.”

Boston’s been linked to multiple names, both in free agency and the trade market, however, none have been as large as Soto. Coming off a trip to the World Series with the New York Yankees and a career-high 41 home runs, teams have begun flocking toward Soto for a chance at a meet-and-greet before he makes his ultimate decision. The Red Sox reportedly had their meeting with Soto on Thursday night in California, taking their chance at adding a generational talent to their lineup next season.

The Red Sox are three years removed from their latest postseason appearance, signed manager Alex Cora to a three-year extension midway through the 2024 campaign and have a wave of youngster poised to get promoted from Triple-A very soon. After three straight swings and misses at playoff contention, and five in the last seven years, Boston is due for an offseason response to re-establish itself as a contender in 2025.

Soto, too, has experienced the glory of winning a World Series championship — doing so in 2019 with the Washington Nationals — and has plenty to offer a franchise like the Red Sox. Both sides are eager and hungry to put aside their respective dissapointing endings to 2024 in hopes of flipping the script moving forward.