Even factoring in the deal’s significant deferrals, when news broke that Alex Bregman was signing with the Red Sox on a three-year, $120 million contract, the expectation was the club would wind up clearing the luxury tax threshold for the first time since 2022.
Speaking to reporters in Fort Myers on Monday, Red Sox CEO Sam Kennedy confirmed that will be the case.
“We are currently over and I would anticipate us being over in 2025,” Kennedy said.
The Red Sox payroll is currently estimated to be approximately $248 million, which would be the highest payroll in club history, topping the previous high of $243.7 in 2019. The first competitive balance tax threshold for 2025 is set at $241 million, and any club that tops that mark for one year will pay a 20% tax on all overages.
There are additional surcharges if a club exceeds the threshold by $20 million, $40 million or $60 million, along with potential draft pick penalties, but Kennedy said those higher thresholds won’t dissuade the club from spending more under the right circumstances.
“The short answer is I think we’re willing to do what it takes to get back to the postseason,” Kennedy said. “We don’t look at the CBT threshold or the second or third levels as inhibitors or barriers that we absolutely have to avoid. What we do look at is what moves do we have to make to ensure competitiveness in the near term and the long term.”
Though Kennedy cautioned that nothing is imminent, he said the Red Sox will consider additional moves, both during spring training and right up to the trade deadline. Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow has suggested the possibility of adding another relief pitcher, and the Red Sox could also sign some of their incumbent players to contract extensions. Garrett Crochet would be one obvious candidate.
In either case, Kennedy called the CBT a “guidepost” that they have to pay attention to, but not a marker that dictates a club’s ultimate spending decisions.
“We’ll see if there’s any sort of late additions here in spring training,” Kennedy said. “We have flexibility if there’s the right transaction to be contemplated, but we like where we are right now and we’ll keep an open mind for any opportunities that could be added.”
Extra innings
The Red Sox announced Monday they’ve signed outfielder Trayce Thompson to a minor league deal and added him to the spring training roster as a non-roster invitee. Thompson, the younger brother of NBA star Klay Thompson, has seven years of MLB experience but last played in the majors in 2023, when he spent time with both the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago White Sox. … With Monday marking the club’s first full-squad workout, the Red Sox held their annual season-opening team meeting, during which Alex Cora, Craig Breslow and Jason Varitek all addressed the players to set the tone for the upcoming season. … Sam Kennedy confirmed the Red Sox are still pushing to host the MLB All-Star Game by the end of the decade, and that the ongoing “Fenway Corners” redevelopment project surrounding the park won’t be a factor in the timing. The Red Sox last hosted the All-Star Game in 1999, so 2029 will mark the 30th anniversary of that occasion. … The Red Sox have sold 1.4 million tickets on the season so far, which Kennedy said is right in line with where the club was at this point last year.
