3 teams that totally blew it by not signing Japanese star Tomoyuki Sugano

Probably the biggest shock is that the pitching-needy Boston Red Sox were unsuccessful in their pursuit of Tomoyuki Sugano. ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported that the Red Sox were one of the teams that were interested in bringing the NPB ace to MLB.

Boston desperately needs to replenish its pitching rotation after the brutal 2020 campaign it endured. Prior to the start of last season, usual ace Chris Sale missed Spring Training due to pneumonia, only to realize he required Tommy John surgery. Then, Eduardo Rodriguez opted out of the season after contracting COVID-19, which caused him to develop myocarditis. That left Nathan Eovaldi as Boston’s top starter by default, and it predictably backfired.

The Red Sox starting rotation accumulated a starter’s ERA of 5.34, which ranked 25th in the entire league. That’s unacceptable for a team that’s expected to compete with the Yankees for the AL East title on annual basis.

General manager Chaim Bloom let it be known that he’s looking to upgrade the starting pitching rotation. However, Bloom isn’t an executive who spends big money, as evidenced by his time as general manager of the Rays. He’s not going to hand a blank check over to Trevor Bauer, so Sugano was his best chance to improve Boston’s weakness heading into 2021.

And Bloom failed, as ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported that the Red Sox were unwilling to meet Sugano’s contract demands. Now, it’s back to the drawing board for Boston.