"When the offseason started on the night of October 2nd, many of the true sickos in Red Sox Nation began looking ahead to 2026 to figure out how to fix a roster that mustered just six runs in a three-game series against the Yankees and struck out 13 times while being shutout in an elimination game to end the season."
"Wait, the Red Sox are already past 200 million dollars? They haven't signed anybody yet! They need to bring in three impact players to be a contender next year! How the hell did this happen!? Well, here's a list: Garrett Crochet's extension kicks in: $3.8M -> $28M Roman Anthony's extension kicks in: $0.5M -> $16.25M Masataka Yoshida is still being paid $18M, and will be in 2027 as well."
After opt-outs by Alex Bregman, Lucas Giolito, and Liam Hendriks and an opt-in by Trevor Story, the Red Sox payroll sits at $218.8M. Non-tendering Nathaniel Lowe would reduce that projection to about $205.3M. Several contract escalations significantly increase committed payroll: Garrett Crochet’s extension jumps from $3.8M to $28M, Roman Anthony’s from $0.5M to $16.25M, Masataka Yoshida remains on a $18M salary through 2027, and Jordan Hicks carries a $12M salary through 2027 replacing an earlier $29M figure tied to Rafael Devers. The 2026 Competitive Balance Tax threshold is $244M, placing Boston roughly $38.7M below it, with over-tax penalties beginning at 20% on each dollar over the 2025 tax level.
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