A power-hitting shortstop hitting free agency in his prime would seem to be a good fit on any number of teams if and when the Major League Baseball lockout ends.
Carlos Correa, 27, has topped 20 home runs in five of his first seven seasons and finished fifth in American League MVP voting while winning his first Gold Glove award for the Houston Astros in 2021.
But when it comes to Correa potentially fitting in with the Boston Red Sox, not everyone is seeing it, with the ongoing lockout partially to blame.
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Ken Rosenthal wrote in The Athletic on Friday that bringing in Correa would mean moving at least one established player -- in this case, Xander Bogaerts -- off of their current position. With spring training already guaranteed to be shorter, taking Bogaerts off of shortstop to accommodate Correa could have a messy trickle-down effect.
"Asking established players to change positions in a month’s time -- maybe less than a month, considering Correa first would need to agree to a contract and pass his physical -- would be problematic, to say the least," Rosenthal wrote.
Shifting Bogaerts to third base and Rafael Devers to first is one scenario laid out by Rosenthal. The Red Sox could also simply slide Bogaerts across the bag to second base and leave Devers at third so as not to disrupt two positions; Christian Arroyo would likely be Boston's starting second baseman if the season were to begin on time, meaning it's still a position where the Red Sox could upgrade.
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Bogaerts, 29, has appeared in 53 games at third base in his career, but not since 2014.
Bogaerts could also be a trade candidate, Rosenthal said, as he can opt out of his current deal following the 2022 season.
Whether the Red Sox land Correa or not, they'll still have some improvements to make before Opening Day, whenever that may be. Competition for Correa should be intense once a labor agreement is reached as well.
Over 19 career games at Fenway Park, Correa is a .347 hitter (26 for 75) with seven homers, 25 runs batted in and a 1.094 OPS.