Here's what the 2025 Red Sox need.
1. A number 2 starter who can slip in behind Crochet
2. A RH corner bat that can hit 30 to 40 HRs.
3. A corner bat with good defense and 15-20C HRs and good contact skills.

Here's what they don't need. Depth in either pitching or hitting.

According to Red Sox Payroll the Sox are currently $40M below the 1st level of the CBT and $60M below the second level of the CBT. It's unlikely they will go over the second level. Estimating that they want to keep about $10M for in-season moves, they probably have about $50M available to spend.

No qualifying offer. RH bat. Share 1b with Casas. It's a good fit. This is where I would spend the FA money. Then trade for a #2 starter.

Heyman was a 14th rounder but received a bonus similar to 7th round pick. Strong arm, but average defense overall. RH power bat to the pull side. Strengthens the catching in the org, which needed it.

Bye now.

3 months of Betts is what they gave up. You don't trade players you trade their contract.

But keep being an asshole though.

When Verdugo was traded to the Yanks, they got Weissert (2 yrs 1.7 WAR) and Richard Fitts (parts of 2 years at 0.3 WAR).
Connor Wong, another 3.3 WAR as part time and full time catcher.
That's a total of 13.3 WAR. Still it's not a good return for 3 months of a great player. But it's NOT NOTHING.

Really? What did they trade? One year of Betts contract, which actually turned out to be 3 months due to Covid.

What was the return? Not great, but not nothing. 4 years of Verdugo. Total 8 WAR. A league average bat who turned into a good defensive RFer.

The offered him $300M! Is that an offer you make to someone you want to leave? I don't blame Mookie. It was his right to go to Free Agency. But once he turned down that offer, the Sox were correct to go in a different direction. Otherwise they get nothing.

Dombrowski offered him $300M in the Spring of 2019. He, or rather Boras, turned it down. The deal he took with LA in 2020 was only worth about $10M more when you factor in all the deferred money.

He was headed for Free Agency, where you get nothing. He chose to go elsewhere.

Milwaukee

If they did that, the Yankees would hire Cora so fast it would make your head spin.

And yet we still have sportscasters/writers counting the number of errors. Errors are not a good thing, but you can't erase the ones that happened in April and May. You can only get more.

Sounds like a candidate for off season surgery after the World Series win.

Every team plays each other in this schedule. No whining allowed.

Early, Sandlin, or how about Tolle?

In Free Agency Players get to choose. Betts had already made it clear that he wasn't choosing Boston. He and Boras had already turned down $300M in the Spring of 2019. Dombrowski then pivoted and gave that money to Sale. Trading Betts was the only choice left.