Could Red Sox Sign This All-Star With A 2.45 ERA Instead Of Tanner Scott?

Ask most Boston Red Sox fans who they want locking down games for them in 2025, and the name Tanner Scott won’t be far from their lips.

Scott is the consensus best relief pitcher available in free agency, and the Red Sox are at least one arm short of an ideal bullpen situation. They also led the league in blown saves in the second half of last season, so finding a potential closer like Scott on the open market is important.

There will be stiff competition for Scott, though, who has reportedly told teams he’s looking for $20 million per year on his next contract. That’s a hefty price for the Red Sox to pay if they’re even lucky enough to be asked by Scott’s camp to pay it.

So who else might be a fit to close games for the Red Sox in 2025 if Scott isn’t within their means?

NBC Sports Boston’s Justin Leger recently named 2023 American League All-Star Carlos Estévez, who finished last season as the closer of the Philadelphia Phillies, as a realistic option for Boston to sign this winter.

“Estevez is coming off an impressive season split between the Phillies and Los Angeles Angels,” Leger wrote. “In 54 appearances (55 innings), the righty posted a 2.45 ERA and 0.90 WHIP. He isn’t the most appealing option on this list, but he could still provide a significant boost to the Red Sox bullpen in 2025.”

Entering his age-32 season, Estévez should have at least a few productive years left, and his low walk rate is a nice bonus for a high-leverage reliever. He gives up more hard contact than you might like to see from a typical closer, but Andrew Bailey and the Red Sox’s pitching lab might have some tricks up their sleeves to combat that.

Estévez will likely be a solid, if not excellent closer for whichever team he plays for next. That might be all the Red Sox need, given the improvements they’ve made to their starting rotation from a season ago.