The Boston Red Sox are the lone team in Major League Baseball yet to sign a free agent this winter, but CEO Sam Kennedy is in lockstep with what commissioner Rob Manfred said this week about baseball exploring a free-agent signing deadline.

“I would just point to the commissioner’s comments earlier this week and strongly agree that it’s worthy of exploration for sure,” Kennedy said in speaking at a Red Sox fan event, Fenway Fest, on Saturday. “In terms of being in a very competitive market, for fan interest and attention, having a defined period would be helpful. Now listen, that’s something that would have to be bargained for (with the player’s union), but it’s worthy of a conversation.”

Baseball’s current collective bargaining agreement expires in December, but a signing deadline figures to be a topic of debate among players and the league. Manfred addressed the idea in a radio interview on WFAN on Thursday after Athletics slugger Brent Rooker said on social media that a signing deadline was “pretty close to the most anti-player idea you could possibly have.”

While the Red Sox have acquired three players via trade this offseason in pitchers Sonny Gray and Johan Oviedo, as well as first baseman Willson Contreras, they have yet to sign a free agent. The club has targeted Alex Bregman all offseason, but negotiations have slowed. Kennedy, citing tampering rules when discussing free agents by name, declined to address the Bregman negotiations specifically but noted the club is hopeful it will continue to add to the roster.

“You gotta ask him,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said when asked how things are progressing with Bregman. “The ball is in his court. Obviously we’ve been working together to see what happens but obviously it’s a different offseason for Alex. You guys know how I feel about him.

“Last year he checked all the boxes that I knew he was going to check, and he checked some boxes that people didn’t know that he was going to check. We just let him work last year. And obviously I cannot talk about free agents, that’s very straightforward, black and white, but I love the player. We love the player. Let’s see what happens.”

The Red Sox did not sign Bregman, who opted out of his three-year, $120 million deal at the end of the season, until Feb. 16, 2025.

Kennedy understands the player’s perspective but pointed to signing deadlines in other sports as a way to bolster interest in the sport.

“I think we’re in a very, very competitive market. And anything that we can do to create even more interest and excitement around Major League Baseball, the better,” Kennedy said. “The rule changes the Joint Competition Committee made with the pitch clock, the bigger bases, the banning of the shift have been extraordinarily well-received. And, I think we should consider any changes that will increase fan interest.