When the Boston Red Sox signed Alex Bregman to a three-year, $120 million deal, it was admittedly a curious fit. The Red Sox had a younger third baseman under contract in Rafael Devers, and even though Bregman was willing to move to second base, he'd also be blocking several top-ranked middle infield prospects at that position.
But, the Red Sox did it anyway. To be fair, when a player of Bregman's caliber is available on the free-agent market, Craig Breslow would've been silly to think about these logistics. However, we're just days into Bregman's tenure with Boston and things are already a bit tense at Red Sox spring training.
Bregman projects as a better defensive third baseman than Devers, who the Red Sox would like to move to designated hitter in favor of their recent acquisition. Devers wants nothing to do with that position change, and even told the media. Devers was evidently promised he'd play third base into the distant future by former Red Sox executive Chaim Bloom, who is no longer with the team. Alex Cora and Breslow highlighted that fact when relaying their decision making to the media, and to Devers.
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Alex Bregman given a taste of what he's missing with the Houston Astros
Cora claims the conversation is more fluid behind closed doors. Devers is not going anywhere, despite hinting he might be open to a trade elsewhere if he had to move to DH.
For Bregman, this all has been less than ideal. The former Astros star spent his entire big-league career with one team, and has two World Series to his name. He knows this isn't a recipe for success. But, to play devil's advocate, it also didn't have to be this way.
Bregman turned down a lucrative contract offer from Houston not that long ago. Dana Brown and the Astros were open to Bregman's return, even after signing Christian Walker and trading for Isaac Paredes to man the corner infield spots. This is in part thanks to Jose Altuve, who was willing to switch positions for Bregman to re-enter the fold.
Once Altuve opened that door, there was no going back. In fact, he's still willing to move around the infield or outfield if it helps the Astros win games. That is what makes Altuve such a desirable teammate, and perhaps shows Bregman what he's missing.
For the current iteration of the Astros without Bregman or Kyle Tucker, it makes the most sense for Altuve to play some games in left field, as well as is usual second base. Learning a new position is nothing for this future Hall of Famer, but he sure wishes Bregman could join him in West Palm Beach.