🤑 Sox swinging for Soto

Good Morning, Boston.

📺 Joe Mazzulla’s “Jeopardy!” famous. The Celtics head coach was name-dropped during Tuesday’s episode under the category “Heist Movies” because of his well-documented love of the Boston-based film “The Town.” So, whose car they gonna take to steal the NBA Cup? 

What’s on tap today:

• Big Barmore’s return

• Jaylen Brown vs. Nike reignites

• Celtics’ City Edition jerseys brick

Let’s get into it …

LEADING OFF

Boston’s next big star?

This offseason could change the Red Sox — and the city. Don’t look now, but chief baseball officer Craig Breslow says the team plans to open up the checkbook ahead of a critical winter. The apple of Boston’s eye? Superstar outfielder Juan Soto, who just led the despised Yankees to the World Series in his first (and potentially last) year in The Bronx. If Boston somehow convinced Soto to come to town, he’d be the latest in a long line of massive free-agent signings that changed the face of Boston sports.

The Sox are no stranger to big moves. The 2004 World Series winners featured contributions from four key signings and trades: 

• Manny Ramirez came to Boston on an eight-year, $160 million contract in 2001.

• David Ortiz, a former Twins castoff, signed a one-year, $1.75 million dollar deal with the Sox in 2003.

• Curt Schilling was acquired via a blockbuster trade with the Diamondbacks before the 2004 season. 

• Keith Foulke was the most sought-after reliever on the market and locked down the end of games that season.

More than a decade later, slugging outfielder J.D. Martinez arrived in Boston on a five-year, $110 million deal, and anchored Boston’s 2018 World Series-winning lineup.

Free agents ushered in a new era for the Bruins. Fresh off of trading captain Joe Thornton, Boston nabbed the two top free-agent targets in 2006: Zdeno Chara and Marc Savard. Concussions cut Savard’s career short, but Chara became arguably the most impactful NHL free-agent signing in decades — anchoring Boston’s blue line for 14 seasons, captaining Boston to a Stanley Cup, and establishing a culture of accountability and inclusion that still permeates through the franchise to this day. 

Al Horford’s signing paved the way for a potential Celtics dynasty. Many of the C’s most impactful acquisitions, like Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, Derrick White, and even Jayson Tatum, came to Boston via trade. But Horford stands out as the greatest free-agent signing in the team’s history both because of his steady play and his role in grooming Tatum and Jaylen Brown into superstars capable of leading a championship team. Had Gordon Hayward not gotten injured in his first Celtics game, he might’ve vied for the top spot as well. 

Soto could be the next big thing. If the potential $600 million price tag doesn’t scare the Red Sox away, Soto would immediately become one of the biggest figures in Boston sports. Unlike in New York or L.A., Soto could be the guy in Boston, serving as the latest in a long line of Dominican-born stars who thrived at Fenway. But even if the Red Sox don’t pull that off, moves like, say, re-acquiring old friend Nathan Eovaldi can move the needle too. Still, I’ll take the “Soto Shuffle” over “The Wave” at Fenway any day.

🤔 Who’s your favorite Boston free-agent signing?

BOSTON SPORTS

Quick hits & headlines

🙏🏽 Christian Barmore comes back to practice. The Patriots’ star defensive tackle has finally returned to practice after recovering from the blood clots that kept him out of action since training camp, according to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport. While Barmore feels unlikely to play this week against the L.A. Rams without much ramp-up time, it could be a major boost for a defense that’s struggled with injuries at every level. Behind that, it will feel good to see Barmore put the health scare behind him.

🗣️ Fred Toucher slams Bill Belichick’s Pats-related pettiness. The 98.5 The Sports Hub host has had enough of Belichick’s grudge against his old team, calling out the ex-Pats coach for downplaying New England’s success in victories while chirping the team repeatedly when they lose. Belichick’s latest transgression: claiming last Sunday’s win over Chicago was more about the Bears’ ineptitude than the Patriots outplaying them. No one said Belichick had to be happy about his ouster, but the obvious spite is lame (and annoyingly predictable).

⚾ Memorabilia of Sox legend Ted Williams to hit auction. The Red Sox Hall-of-Famer’s estate will sell several items following the death of Williams’ daughter Claudia, who had them in her keeping. The memorabilia includes:

• His 1946 MVP award

• The hat he wore to the 1999 MLB All-Star Game

• The Presidential Medal of Freedom awarded to him for his service as a naval aviator in World War II

Despite that impressive haul, the ball from Williams’ “red seat” dinger in 1946 has still yet to be unearthed.

BEYOND BOSTON

Out-of-town report

Nike reignites beef with Jaylen Brown. The sneaker company trolled Brown Wednesday night for calling Giannis Antetokounmpo a “child” while hyping up the “Greek Freak’s” 59-point game. A little “childish” for a big corporation, noWR Tee Higgins likely to hit free agency in 2025. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports there’s “little to no chance“ the receiver stays in Cincinnati after this season, which would make him the top free-agent pass-catcher in next year’s market. Just fit him for his Patriots jersey already.

Bears fire offensive coordinator after losing to Patriots. Maybe NFL analyst Merril Hoge was right: Drake Maye is the kind of player who will get coaches fired — just not his coaches. Wonder if the Bears wish they had him instead of Caleb Williams now.

LAST CALL

Missing the mark

Celtics’ NBA Cup and City Edition designs ain’t it. The C’s officially unveiled their City Edition jerseys on Thursday, and they look as uninspired as we feared, which is a shame after how crisp the previous designs looked. Add that to the excessively green City Cup parquet painting, and the Celtics somehow nailed the combo of “not doing enough” while “doing too much.” Guess not even the Celtics can hit every shot they take.

THE BEST THING I SAW IN SPORTS

Brews and (women’s) ball

🫢 Drawdown Brewing puts women’s sports on display. If you’re especially interested in women’s games — especially the Boston Fleet, NWSL Boston, or the supernova-ing Caitlin Clark and the WNBA — Drawdown is the place to be. In fact, you can pull up this weekend to watch the NWSL playoffs and cheer on some of the women’s national team stars. Nothing goes together like beer and ball.

🗞 That’s a wrap. I’m blocking off January 17 to watch the new Unrivaled 3-on-3 League tip-off at Drawdown and hoping Clark accepts the Godfather offer to join.

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