The Red Sox have reached out to Hiroki Kuroda

For those of you keeping track, it’s the first full week of the offseason and already the Red Sox have been linked to approximately 79% of all known baseball players, living and dead. Indeed, in the last 24 hours we’ve heard about them and Anibal Sanchez, Mike Napoli, Adam LaRoche, Shin-Soo Choo, Justin Masterson, Justin Upton. So what’s one more?

Hiroki Kuroda receiving interest from teams other than #Yankees and #Dodgers. #RedSox have reached out as well. @mlbonfox

— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) November 8, 2012

Kuroda is definitely an interesting free agent, as he has preferred to do one-year deals and has contemplated returning to Japan in the past. The Dodgers would definitely want him back. So too would the Yankees. And the Red Sox have both cash and a need.

The White Sox have reportedly picked up first baseman Yonder Alonso from the Indians, according to Stadium. The return for Alonso is expected to be nothing more flashy than a “fringe prospect,” though the minutiae of the deal is still pending a formal announcement from both teams.

Alonso, 31, inked a two-year deal with the Indians during the 2017 offseason. His first campaign with the club yielded a modest .250/.317/.421 batting line, 23 home runs, .738 OPS and 0.7 fWAR in 574 PA. The real boon for the White Sox may not be a passable veteran bat, however, but something more intangible — like Alonso’s clout with his brother-in-law and highly-coveted free agent slugger, Manny Machado.

While Alonso’s 2018 output represented a significant decline from the career-best numbers he posted in 2017, he’s still a solid contributor at the plate and, more importantly, slated to remain under team control for the next two years with just $8 million owed in 2019 and a $9 million option in 2020. As MLB.com’s Anthony Castrovince notes, the $17 million the Indians just erased from their payroll should give them enough room to accommodate the contracts for right-handers Trevor Bauer and Corey Kluber — a bonus regardless of what they happen to get in the trade.