The Boston Red Sox gave star third baseman Alex Bregman a three-year, $120 million deal to play the hot corner … right?
Well, not if preexisting Red Sox third baseman and three-time All-Star Rafael Devers has anything to say about it.
Devers recently made it clear that he views third base as his position. First baseman Triston Casas also gave Devers a vote of confidence at third base, saying that “Bregman should play second.”
But none of this talk bothers Bregman.
“We’ve been having a lot of fun,” Bregman said Tuesday when asked about getting to know Devers at spring training. “We’ve been taking ground balls back here, during our work together. Talking about winning. Talking about baseball. Talking about being excited for the season. Last night we all got together and had dinner. It’s great. …
“I’m super excited to just be his teammate. He’s a great player. I think everybody in this clubhouse is worried about winning, and whatever it takes to help the team win — that’s all I’m focused on. I’ll play wherever [manager Alex Cora] tells me to play.”
The initial thought was that Bregman, a Gold Glover, would start at third for Boston, with Devers — who posted -9 DRS at third base last season and has never finished a regular season with a plus-DRS — moving to first base.
Bregman has overwhelmingly played third base throughout his nine-year MLB career, having made 977 career starts at the hot corner, 107 starts at shortstop and just two starts at second base. Last season, Bregman posted 6 DRS and an American League-best total zone of 12 at third base, after posting 5 DRS in 2023.
Unless shortstop Trevor Story, who hasn’t played 100 regular-season games in each of his three years with the Red Sox, misses extensive time due to injury or is moved to second base — which he primarily played for Boston in 2022 — Bregman figures to play second base if Devers is staying at third.
A one-time Silver Slugger, two-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion with the Houston Astros, Bregman is one of the best third basemen of his generation. Since becoming a full-time player in 2017 — and excluding the 2020 truncated season — Bregman has averaged 25.3 home runs and 86.7 RBIs per season, while boasting a combined .273/.368/.483 slash line and 4.7 WAR from 2017-24 (including 2020).
That said, Bregman is coming off a season that saw his offensive production dip, totaling 75 RBIs and a .768 OPS in 2024. Nevertheless, Bregman headlines a substantial offseason haul for the Red Sox, who also acquired budding left-handed starting pitcher Garrett Crochet from the Chicago White Sox, signed former Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Walker Buehler and added reliever and seven-time All-Star Aroldis Chapman, among other moves.
The Red Sox are coming off an 81-81 season that saw them miss the playoffs for a third consecutive season, but Bregman is bullish that the franchise’s fortunes are changing.
“I think everybody here believes in their abilities,” Bregman said. “I think all of us believe that if we all put together a good effort this season, we have a really good chance of being a winning baseball team. For me, I can only talk for myself, I’ll play wherever it helps the team win.”
Bregman joins a Boston offense that was in the top 10 in MLB in runs (751), hits (1,404), on-base percentage (.319) and slugging percentage (.423) last season.
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