The Red Sox may be interested in bringing Jackie Bradley Jr. back, but they clearly aren't alone.
The reality that the Sox will have very real competition for Bradley Jr.'s services came in Thursday morning with a report out of the New York Post that the centerfielder could be a priority for the Mets.
The Mets -- one of the teams thought to have significant resources this offseason -- recently missed out on their chief outfield target George Springer, who inked a six-year deal with the Blue Jays.
The fit between Bradley Jr. and the Mets isn't a perfect one considering he hits from the same side of the plate as fellow outfielders Michael Conforto and Brandon Nimmo. The 30-year-old has also drawn interest from the Giants.
Of note is that Zack Scott, who served as the head of the Red Sox' analytics department throughout Bradley Jr.'s time in Boston, was just recently promoted to general manager of the Mets.
"We continue to stay in touch with him,” Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom said Monday. "I expect we’ll continue to until his free agency resolves."