OK, it’s finally time for the gloves to come off again…
I’ve mostly reserved judgement while giving the Red Sox some credit this offseason for their bonafide additions to the rotation, all the while saying there is more work to be done.
That work? Signing or trading for a right-handed bat. It’s the lone piece holding this team back from completing a pretty decent, ‘B” grade-range offseason, in my book.
And with solid options still left on the table, including the now long-targeted Alex Bregman, it appears the Sox are back to their old, unserious ways….
Instead of pushing full (or even half) throttle ahead with a chance to add a game-changing talent, Boston’s front office is reportedly content to sit back and leave it all to chance.
According to baseball insider Ken Rosenthal on the “Foul Territory” podcast, the Sox’s approach to signing Bregman has been “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 and we are going to leverage this and negotiate as hard as possible.”
Yet, as Rosenthal notes, “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.”
What a truly weak and pathetic approach. You have a clear and obvious need, and you have the money — it will take significantly less of it than you were allegedly willing so spend on $765 million man Juan Soto about a month ago — to do something about it.
And yet? Same old Sox…
I acknowledge that Bregman is no Soto, Shohei Ohtani, etc. He’s never been considered the best player in the sport. But he’s still pretty damn good, and again, he’s exactly what you need on multiple fronts: a good contact and power hitter, a good defender, and by many accounts a good clubhouse leader.
Alex Bregman at Fenway Park:
— Boston Sports Gordo (@BOSSportsGordo) January 14, 2025
🔺21 G
🔺.375/.490/.750
🔺7 HR (54 HR pace per 162)
🔺17 K // 16 BB
His 1.240 OPS at Fenway is his best at any ballpark in which he’s played at least 7 games.
pic.twitter.com/6cUTfxW9zg
What’s the freaking hold up here, John Henry, Tom Werner, Sam Kennedy, Craig Breslow?
Clearly, the Sox brass are lukewarm on Bregman — but that really misses the point. Your options are dwindling. Do you run the risk of a signing a “bad deal” with Bregman? Sure. Should that stop them from bringing on a player who would clearly help elevate this team in the next couple of years? Absolutely not.
It never used to stop them. Signing bad deals (and eating some money to move on from them) used to be the MO of this team, and it won them four World Series championships in a span of 14 years in the process…
The only reason to stop doing something that’s brought them unprecedented success is that they simply don’t want to anymore. Henry’s Fenway Sports Group has its sights on grander goals than winning silly old baseball games.
Maybe the Sox do wind up signing Bregman with their backward strategy, but it certainly wouldn’t signal a team that is all in on getting back to contention or whatever Kennedy promised in his year-end press conference.
If that happens, some might ask what’s the difference? They got an All-Star free agent, who cares how? If that’s your perspective, you’re certainly entitled to it. But as long as I’ve got a pen and a keyboard, I won’t stop holding this team’s decision-makers’ feet to the fire.
You deserve more than a half-in approach, Red Sox fans. You always have, and under an ownership group that’s shown a willingness to go all-in before, you should never accept anything less. It’s the bar they’ve set for themselves.
Don’t like it? Get out of the game.
Or just go sign Alex freaking Bregman…
