3 Red Sox Alex Bregman pivots that would make fans forgive Craig Breslow

Things have been trending in the wrong direction for the Boston Red Sox in the Alex Bregman sweepstakes of late, with the Houston Astros reentering the fray and Craig Breslow reportedly unwilling to match the five or six years he's been offered elsewhere. Unless something changes over the next days or weeks (or Alex Cora stages some sort of soft coup), it's likely that Boston will have to look elsewhere for the righty lineup addition it seeks.

Which, in a vacuum, is defensible enough. Five or six years is a long time to pay Bregman, who will be shifting to a new position if he came to the Red Sox. But these moves don't happen in a vacuum, and in context it sure seems like Breslow is headed toward another offseason of overpromising and underdelivering. Sure, the Garrett Crochet trade was a big splash, and Walker Buehler is exciting, but this roster still feels incomplete — and John Henry still has yet to put up the sort of cash you'd expect from this franchise.

So, if Bregman is no longer an option, how can Breslow salvage the rest of this offseason and keep pace with the rest of the AL's best? Here are three ideas to consider.

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3. Taylor Ward is an underrated trade target

So maybe this one wouldn't win the news cycle, and acquiring an outfielder wouldn't fill the current hole at second base. But if Boston wants to keep that seat warm for Kristian Campbell (maybe supplemented by another veteran addition like Jorge Polanco) while adding another righty bat to the lineup, they could do a whole lot worse.

Ward has frequently been derailed by injuries over the past few seasons with the Los Angeles Angels. When he's right, though, he's a very solid all-around hitter, someone who can hit for average, get on base and deliver 20-25 homers a year — maybe even more with 81 home games at Fenway Park. And with a surplus in the outfield right now, L.A. might be willing to send him east for the right price.

With the Bregman dream dead, there might not be a true impact addition left on the board for Breslow. But Ward is a solidly above-average player who hits right-handed and would make this lineup a lot deeper than it currently is.

2. Swing a deal with the Padres for Michael King, Robert Suarez

If an offensive upgrade isn't in the cards, why not just build the whole plane out of pitching? The San Diego Padres are down bad right now, their offseason taken hostage by an ownership dispute after whiffing on Roki Sasaki. The team might need to shed some money before it can spend some money, and that means that just about anyone with two or fewer years of team control left is reportedly on the trading block.

Boston can work this situation to its advantage in more ways than one. The bullpen remains a definite need, with Aroldis Chapman and Liam Hendriks currently the most proven high-leverage options at Alex Cora's disposal. And while the rotation is pretty full after acquiring Crochet and Buehler earlier this winter, building a package around, say, Kutter Crawford and Vaughn Grissom plus another piece or two would give this pitching staff a huge shot in the arm.

1. Call the Cubs about Seiya Suzuki

If Bregman is off the table and Pete Alonso isn't a fit, then the next-best righty bat potentially available right now is Suzuki, who isn't wild about assuming full-time DH duties for a Chicago Cubs team that's looking to get a little more financially flexible as it is. The 30-year-old might be among the most underrated hitters in baseball right now, and as a right-handed corner outfielder he fits Boston's needs like a glove.

Chicago isn't dying to get rid of a good player, and it'll likely cost a bit to get Jed Hoyer's attention. But the Red Sox have the ammunition, and it's clear that they need one more quality hitter to round this lineup out before Opening Day.