Boston Red Sox
Jake Bauers took home NLCS MVP honors after driving in six runs in the Brewers’ four-game sweep of the Dodgers.
Jake Bauers took home NLCS MVP honors on Thursday. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
October 16, 2026 | 7:24 AM
3 minutes to read
With a lockout looming, it remains to be seen when exactly Craig Breslow and the Red Sox’ top brass will have a window to augment their roster.
Amid that uncertainty rooted in this offseason are resolute needs for a Red Sox team that has sputtered in back-to-back wild card exits in the Bronx.
If Boston wants to assert itself as a viable contender in a cutthroat AL East, it needs to add some serious pop to its lineup.
Rather than simply banking on a healthy Roman Anthony or Curtis Mead, Breslow and Co. will need to steel themselves against potential regression, injury woes, and other setbacks that could easily turn Boston’s batting order from a potential howitzer back into a peashooter.
It’s a task easier said than done, especially given the state of this free agent class.
Boston could target veteran bats like Randy Arozarena, Seiya Suzuki, or Brandon Lowe as short-term bridge options to supplement a Red Sox lineup that needs more proven production beyond players like Willson Contreras, Wilyer Abreu, and Anthony.
The Red Sox could also try to flip prospects and MLB trade chips this winter in search of a potential impact bat like Cincinnati’s Elly De La Cruz — although Boston’s cupboard of assets has already taken a hit after the team drained its pitching-prospect pool to pry Adley Rutschman out of Baltimore.
Unlike last year, when no-brainer offseason targets like Pete Alonso were ripe for the picking, the Red Sox will likely have to comb through this sparse free-agent group to extract as much value as possible.
And when it comes to identifying the type of hitter that the Red Sox would covet, Brewers slugger Jake Bauers would seemingly fall right into their wheelhouse.
Sure, inking the 31-year-old Bauers to a contract this offseason may not steal plenty of headlines.
After all, Bauers was essentially a platoon-hitting journeyman before finally putting it all together this season with the Brewers.
But the results have been impressive for Bauers in 2026 — with the left-handed hitter slashing .266/.389/.484 with 26 home runs and 86 RBI with Milwaukee as a first baseman and corner outfielder.
Bauers has also made his presence felt in the playoffs for Milwaukee, punctuated by a go-ahead, two-run shot in Game 3 of the NLCS — the culmination of an 11-pitch at-bat that turned a one-run deficit into a one-run lead for the Brewers.
He added a two-run double in Milwaukee’s clinching Game 4 win over the Dodgers — earning NLCS MVP honors after driving in six runs over that four-game sweep against the two-time defending World Series champions.
Bauers may not be a household name. But a peek under the hood at his profile paints the picture of a late bloomer who doesn’t strike out often, works the count, and has a propensity for tearing the cover off the ball.
Given Boston’s emphasis on bat speed and hard-hit percentages, a player like Bauers should hold plenty of appeal.
According to Bauers’ Baseball Savant page, he ranks in the 91st percentile in average exit velocity (92.1 miles per hour), 94th percentile in hard-hit percentage (51.9), and 93rd percentile in bat speed (76.5).
Bauers’ plate discipline would also be a welcome sight on a Red Sox team prone to whiffs and uncompetitive at-bats — with the veteran in the 93rd percentile in chase percentage (21.7) and the 98th percentile in walk percentage (16.3).
A right-handed bat like Suzuki or Arozarena might hold more appeal, given their ability to pepper the Green Monster.
But on a Red Sox team focused on value, Bauers feels like an unflashy — but effective — option for Boston, especially as a DH who could spell both Contreras at first and a corner outfielder like Anthony when needed.
Conor Ryan is a staff writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023.
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