Red Sox: Chaim Bloom gives outlook on J.D. Martinez, Kyle Schwarber’s futures

Boston Red Sox general manager Chaim Bloom spoke about the possibility of J.D. Martinez and Kyle Schwarber returning for next season.

The Boston Red Sox had a promising start to the ALCS, taking a 2-1 lead over the Houston Astros, but lost the subsequent three games to fall short of reaching the World Series.

Now, the Red Sox have to pivot to Hot Stove season, and there are players that could be set to hit the open market. Specifically, J.D. Martinez and Kyle Schwarber.

With the possibility of both leaving this offseason, Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom told the media that he likes both players, but will have to see how the offseason unfolds.

"“We like them both. We have to look at it all obviously,” Bloom said, via Patrick McAvoy of NESN. “The offseason can unfold in different ways and both guys obviously play the outfield as well. So there’s different ways that this can unfold. I think talent is talent. There’s a lot of different ways to get where we want to go and we just need to weigh all of the benefits and trade-offs of any configuration.”"

J.D. Martinez, Kyle Schwarber could both hit unrestricted free agency this winter

Martinez is not set to hit unrestricted free agency right away, as he has a player option worth $19.35 million for the 2022 season. That is the final year of his five-year, $110 million contract with the Red Sox.

Given that Martinez is coming off a 2021 campaign where he recorded a .286 batting average, a .867 OPS, 28 home runs and 99 RBI through 148 games, he could very well choose to explore the open market for a new deal instead of playing out the final year of his deal.

As for Schwarber, he was an impactful player for Boston since arriving at the trade deadline. Through 41 regular-season games in a Red Sox uniform, Schwarber slashed .291/.435/.522 while posting seven home runs, 18 RBI, 34 runs scored and 39 hits. Not to mention that he hit 25 home runs and knocked in 53 runs in 72 games with the Washington Nationals earlier in the year.

Now, Schwarber is set to become an unrestricted free agent once again and there will be teams interested in adding his bat to the lineup. But he did say recently that he would be open to a return to Boston.

It will be interesting to see how Bloom attacks the offseason, especially since this Red Sox team was just two wins away from reaching the Fall Classic.