This story was excerpted from Ian Browne’s Red Sox Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

DALLAS -- The Winter Meetings got off to a rollicking start on Sunday night as superstar outfielder Juan Soto agreed with the Mets on a record-setting $15-year, $765 million contract, sources confirmed to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand.

So what does this mean for the Red Sox, who were one of the finalists for Soto?

For starters, it means they are going to intensify their quest to land free-agent outfielder Teoscar Hernández.

The Sox flirted with Hernández and his big right-handed bat last winter, but they lost out to the Dodgers.

That worked out well for Hernández, who won a World Series title with Los Angeles. But the contract was for just the one season, which means the Red Sox can go after Hernández again and try to sign him this time.

Regardless of what happened with Soto, the Red Sox were already in need of a big right-handed bat following Saturday night’s news that Tyler O’Neill -- who belted 31 homers in 113 games for Boston in 2024 -- agreed to terms with the Orioles on a three-year deal.

As far as right-handed hitters go, Hernández is the best pure run producer on the market.

The competition is likely to be stiff, as the Dodgers have interest in bringing him back, even after agreeing to terms on a contract with left-handed-hitting outfielder Michael Conforto. And the Yankees are looking to add some more muscle to their lineup after finishing as the runner-up in the Soto sweepstakes.

If one thing was clear while Boston played to a 38-43 record at home last season, it was that it needs some pull-happy thumpers who can take advantage of the Green Monster.

In 45 career games and 189 plate appearances at Fenway, Hernández has a line of .282/.344/.606 with 14 homers and 44 RBIs. He would be a perfect fit.

If the Sox aren’t successful in landing Hernández, here are other free agents who could fit nicely into Boston’s 2025 lineup.

Alex Bregman: Not only does Bregman have the right-handed bat the Red Sox need, but he has the firecracker personality that would fit in perfectly in the clubhouse. Unless the Sox decide to move Rafael Devers off of third base, Bregman would likely have to move to second base. Bregman is good for about 25 homers per season.

Anthony Santander: The switch-hitting outfielder smashed a career-high of 44 home runs for Baltimore last season. While 32 of those homers were left-handed, Santander was no slouch against lefties, ripping 12 homers and posting a .794 OPS in 180 plate appearances.

Pete Alonso: Imagine the damage Alonso could do whole playing half of his games at Fenway? The problem is there isn’t a great positional fit at the moment. Triston Casas, a left-handed hitter, is lined up to play first for the Red Sox and is under team control for another four seasons. Things could change if Casas is needed in a trade for a pitcher such as White Sox lefty Garrett Crochet. Considering how much the Mets are investing in Soto, there is practically no chance they have room for Alonso in their budget.

Christian Walker: Like Alonso, Walker is a first baseman, which means the Red Sox would have to find a new home for Casas. Walker’s right-handed bat has mashed a total of 95 homers for the D-backs over the past three seasons.