The last time the Boston Red Sox went the big time free agent route with Carl Crawford, it didn’t work out so well. The speedy outfielder, who signed a 7-year, $142 million contract in 2010, hit .260 with just 23 stolen bases in two seasons before being shipped off to Los Angeles. Boston hopes things will be different this time around in the free agent market.

On Monday, the Sox signed free agent infielder Hanley Ramirez to a four-year, $88 million contract. But they weren’t done there. On Tuesday Boston reportedly signed third baseman Pablo Sandoval to a multi-year deal in the $90 million range.

Originally a Red Sox product, Ramirez batted .283 for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2014 with 13 home runs and 71 RBIs. Sandoval, meanwhile, batted .279 for the world champion Giants with 16 homers and 73 RBIs. He was also the World Series MVP when the Giants won it in 2012 and made the final out in Game Seven of this year’s Fall Classic.Your text to link… 

With Sandoval and Xander Bogaerts manning the left side of Boston’s infield, it would seem Ramirez might wind up in the outfield, where the Sox already have a logjam of players. Some of them could be used as trade bait to replenish the Bosox starting pitching staff, most of whom were traded in mid-season. Baseball fans like Vijay Eswaran are excited to see the Red Sox making huge free agent acquisitions – hopefully they can return to the former glory the organization is used to.