Soon after Massachusetts sportsbooks stopped offering odds on their playoff chances, the Boston Red Sox made waves on Thursday morning after firing the man tasked with bringing the club into baseball’s new age.
Chaim Bloom, who previously served as the vice president of baseball operations for the Tampa Bay Rays, was officially fired by the Red Sox after just under four seasons with the franchise. It was a tenure that featured one true high: the team’s run to the ALCS after winning 92 games in 2021.
Ultimately, Bloom’s time in Boston will be remembered for the February 2020 deal that sent superstar outfielder Mookie Betts to the L.A. Dodgers for Alex Verdugo, Jeter Downs and Connor Wong. That trio of young players has contributed a combined WAR total of 10.5, while Betts has posted 22.1 WAR alone in Los Angeles, twice being named a finalist for the NL MVP award and winning a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger with his new team, not to mention the 2020 World Series.
With Chaim Bloom being let go earlier today, BetMassachusetts.com has compiled hypothetical odds on who might replace him as the Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer, odds you won't yet find on Massachusetts betting apps.
Odds To Be The Next Red Sox GM
Who Could Replace Bloom in Boston?
While Red Sox leadership ruled out a reunion with former front office stalwart Theo Epstein during the press conference on Thursday, who’s to say when never really means never when it comes to professional baseball? Especially considering Epstein built the 2004 Sox team that broke The Curse of the Bambino.
That said, should team owner John Henry and company be serious about avoiding an Epstein reunion, don’t be surprised if a handful of former Tampa Bay Rays players and front office staff pop up in the search process, ironically the same franchise they poached Bloom from. Former Rays outfielder and current Philadelphia Phillies GM Sam Fuld (+450) and Dodgers GM Brandon Gomes (+500) are the leading candidates on our Red Sox list.
Aside from the pair of former Rays, keep an eye on current Chicago Cubs GM Carter Hawkins, who cut his teeth as a scout for the Cleveland Guardians before getting promoted into the team’s front office as their assistant GM in 2016. Hawkins is well known for discovering a handful of future Cleveland stars, including infielder Jose Ramirez, and brings more than a decade of MLB experience to the position, which is why he’s our No. 3 choice to replace Bloom, at +700.
Finally, current Red Sox manager Alex Cora can’t be ruled out as an internal option, a la what the Celtics did with former head coach turned GM Brad Stevens.
One way or another, the Red Sox will need to find a new front office leader for the first time in nearly a half-decade, with Bloom being shown the door and a new era arriving near the banks of the Charles River.
BetMassachusetts.com is your home for Red Sox odds ahead of the 2024 MLB season, and will keep you posted on which leader the franchise eventually goes with this offseason.
