Yankees gifted reason to laugh as Red Sox sign one of Brian Cashman's mistakes

New York Yankees fans have done their fair share of complaining this offseason; some of it warranted, some of it unfathomably ridiculous. We can admit it. But let us, for a moment, divert your attention from that so we can laugh at the Boston Red Sox.

The Sox, who were eliminated by the Yankees in the 2025 postseason, have been searching high and low for infielders ever since they botched negotiations with Alex Bregman and believed Scott Boras was bluffing when he said his client had a larger offer on the table. They went all in, pushed their chips to the middle of the table, and Boras took the deed to their house. Bregman is now a Cub.

That left a major hole on the left side of the infield, which has kept Craig Breslow and the front office on their toes as they try to reconfigure things. For as constructive Boston has been this offseason, bringing in Sonny Gray, Ranger Suarez, Willson Contreras and Johan Oviedo ... they've also been incredibly underwhelming, and their latest move proves that.

According to reports, the Red Sox are in agreement with former Yankees infielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who was polarizing during his time in the Bronx as he represented a massive Brian Cashman mistake. He also alienated Blue Jays fans during his handful of games in Toronto this past year after that baserunning controversy in Game 7 of the World Series.

Now, in Boston, he'll play ... second base? Third base? Do they even know? Right now the depth chart says Romy Gonzalez and Marcelo Mayer. For as talented as the Sox are, this feels like a woefully incomplete group despite having every opportunity at their fingertips this offseason.

Former polarizing Yankee Isiah Kiner-Falefa reportedly signs with Red Sox

Can Contreras and IKF replace Bregman in the aggregate? Our answer is a resounding "no", and Red Sox fans likely agree with that. They cannot be pleased with the pivot from Breslow, even if their pitching staff feels like it's much better.

IKF has a career .660 OPS, but his defensive versatility is his calling card. That's not what the Red Sox necessarily needed, either. They should've been seeking a thumper who could hold down the hot corner or second base. Did they not learn from IKF's stint in the Bronx?

Cashman made the fatal error of acquiring Kiner-Falefa (and Josh Donaldson) in that awful trade with the Twins prior to the 2022 season. He was viewed as the stopgap option before the arrival of Anthony Volpe, who's shaping up to be another colossal front office mishap. The Yankees passed on a marquee free agent shortstop class and prioritized Kiner-Falefa and Volpe, and have been paying the price ever since.

Typically, we'd be saying, "Great, wait until this former Yankee makes us hate our lives in July as a member of the Red Sox" ... but if we were able to put money on it, we'd bet that the Sox will be regretting this move by May.