Red Sox
“We’re gonna take our chances that no one else will (sign him).”
With spring training just a month away, the Red Sox are still in search of a right-handed bat to plant in the heart of their lineup.
Boston is in luck, as former Astros third baseman Alex Bregman remains on the market as arguably the best hitter still left in free agency.
But even with the team’s clear need for pop at the plate and Alex Cora’s continued endorsement of Bregman this winter, Boston has not inked the 30-year-old infielder to a deal.
According to longtime MLB insider Ken Rosenthal, that inaction might be a ploy from the Red Sox — especially if it leads to a desperate Bregman eventually lowering his contract demands with spring right around the corner.
“I believe what’s happening is that the Red Sox are simply saying, ‘We don’t think he’s going to Toronto, we don’t think Detroit is going to sign him, so we’re gonna take our chances that no one else will (sign him), and we are going to leverage this and negotiate as hard as possible,’” Rosenthal said on “Foul Territory” Monday. “The problem is, they still might not get Bregman and we’re not exactly sure whether or not the front office wants to commit to Bregman.”
While Cora has continued to praise Bregman and highlight his potential fit in Boston, there have been reports that the rest of the Red Sox top brass are not as enamored with the two-time World Series champion.
“Boston’s pursuit, according to an industry source, is somewhat complicated by some internal disagreement over Bregman,” MassLive’s Sean McAdam reported in December. “While manager Alex Cora and team president Sam Kennedy are known to be big proponents of Bregman, the source said some members of the baseball operations staff, including chief baseball officer Craig Breslow, are more circumspect when it comes to the player.”
While Bregman has primarily played third base during his tenure with the Astros, Cora reiterated over the weekend that Bregman can play second base — which would allow Boston to keep Rafael Devers at third and eliminate the need to move first baseman Triston Casas.
“Alex was a Gold Glover at third base. We all know that,” Cora said on NESN during the team’s Fenway Fest. “But in 2017, I had a conversation with him and he needed to play third because it was [Carlos] Correa [at shortstop] and [Jose] Altuve [at second]. I always envisioned Alex as a Gold Glove second baseman. His size, the way he moves, it felt kind of like, ‘You will be a second baseman.’
“But he has played third base at a high level. So we’ll see where he ends up and we’ll see where he ends up playing.”
The Red Sox’s patience in the free-agent market paid off in 2018, when Boston eventually signed J.D. Martinez to a five-year, $110 million contract in February after the 30-year-old slugger’s market dried up. It was a move that paid off in record time, as Martinez drove in 130 runs that season en route to a World Series title.
Still, Boston is inviting plenty of risk by playing hardball with Bregman, especially if another team does eventually jump in with an appealing contract offer.
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