Remaking the Pink Sox? Begin by taking a look at their free-agent selections.

The Pink Sox (72-68) sit 5 behind the Blue Jays (77-63) for the third wild card, with the floundering Rangers (76-63) between them and 22 video games remaining. Staying forward of New York (70-70) appears like a extra manageable aim, given the types of video games the Sox have to make a run — like Tuesday’s — appear to slide lots.

So, let’s look forward. This weekend will supply a reminder of the place the Sox actually stand, the Orioles breaking out on the backs of the sixth-youngest lineup within the majors — Adley Rutschman, Anthony Santander, Gunnar Henderson, Austin Hays, and Ryan Mountcastle are all not less than a yr from free company.

How do they repair it? (Who’ll do the fixing isn’t an unfair query both, which makes the work all of the tougher.) A superb place to start out, it appears, is to contemplate the pending free brokers, of which there are three essential ones.

Adalberto Mondesi, who by no means obtained out of Fort Myers and obtained so far as some average baseball actions in August earlier than being shut down once more, is outdoors of that group. Joely Rodríguez was presupposed to be a key lefthander within the bullpen, however was solely wholesome sufficient to throw 11 innings. And Corey Kluber lasted solely 9 begins within the rotation earlier than being demoted. His push to pitch once more this yr appears like simply an audition for his subsequent crew — probably his sixth group in six years.

James Paxton

In hindsight, Boston ought to’ve traded the 34-year-old on the deadline, when he had a 3.34 ERA and the scuffling begin he had July 29 in San Francisco felt like a momentary blip. It didn’t and, as we noticed for many of August, it wasn’t.

Paxton will, ought to he pitch Tuesday towards the Yankees, hopefully, cross the 100-inning threshold for the season. (He’s at 96.) That he would battle late within the season after throwing 20, 1, and 0 innings the final three seasons isn’t a shock. Nonetheless, it additionally makes for an intriguing query going into the winter.

When he was recent, he was Boston’s finest beginning pitcher. He’s now constructed himself again into triple-digit innings for the primary time since 2019, when he was arguably the ace of the Yankees workers.

It appears like there would possibly nonetheless be one thing right here, and the Pink Sox definitely are in want of innings. Getting them from a participant who has already professed he’s “snug” with the franchise and its medical workers, appears like a fairly good back-end choice.

Adam Duvall

The what-might-have-beens are robust with this one. The slugging middle fielder put collectively runs of .455/.514/1.030 in eight video games earlier than he busted his wrist within the outfield and .462/.512/1.154 in that 10-game stretch towards the Astros and Dodgers that might’ve outlined the Pink Sox season.

I suppose it did outline the Pink Sox season anyway. Simply not within the best path.

Even lacking 54 video games, nobody’s going to grip about Duvall’s $7 million paycheck in 2023. On the contrary: I might think about the winter goes to be stuffed with requires the crew to deliver him again.

I’m not feeling them. Previous to that sizzling 10-game run final month, Duvall was a 0.0 fWAR participant throughout 53 video games — from his return in early June to Aug. 20. (He hit seven homers in 194 plate appearances, fourth on the crew in that span.) Furthermore, his protection in middle area has not been good, calculated as minus-6 defensive runs saved and three outs under common throughout the season.

He’s been a enjoyable watch, and his literal dangerous break submarined what might need been a season that might have made these Pink Sox into one thing extra. However with Ceddanne Rafaela right here and spectacular within the outfield, it’s time to maneuver on.

Justin Turner

It is a exhausting one, and it’s pending a choice from Turner on a $13.4 million participant choice for 2024. The deal has a $6.7 million buyout, although, which implies Turner will nearly definitely come out forward given his 2023 if he opts at no cost company.

So, what to do?

The 38-year-old has been completely every little thing the Pink Sox might have hoped for each on the plate — tied for the crew lead in RBIs, second in on-base, tied for second in hits, third in homers — and within the clubhouse, the place he’s been a constructive affect on so many teammates. (Not not like how his DH predecessor, J.D. Martinez, was.)

He hasn’t, nevertheless, been capable of contribute something greater than satisfactory, part-time protection at first base, which creates a problem when Triston Casas is the one of many ugly triumvirate with Rafael Devers and Masataka Yoshida who appears to be wanting up with the glove.

These three are all locked in to the crew’s forseeable future. Being able to plug one among them in at DH every now and then appears a prerequisite to the ’24 Sox bettering within the area. That may’t actually occur if Turner returns.

It’s a troublesome balancing act, and there are arguments to be made on each side.

We’ll have months to mull them. And the clock on 2024, Alex Cora’s public optimism apart, is already working.

One very last thing: The Sox have 5 arbitration-eligible gamers. Alex Verdugo ($6.3 million in 2023) and Nick Pivetta ($5.35M) are of their final winters earlier than free company; Luis Urías ($4.7M) and Reese McGuire ($1.225M) are two away; and John Schreiber ($750K) is three.

We’ll depart the Verdugo query for one more day. Feels prefer it may very well be one other 1,000 phrases by itself.