While the Boston Red Sox decision to sign Alex Bregman at the start of spring training added a powerful piece to the team’s lineup, it also brought a bit of controversy into the clubhouse.
In Bregman, the Red Sox acquired the 2024 Gold Glove Award winner at third base in the American League, a player who earned AL Most Valuable Player votes in four seasons while with the Houston Astros. Problem is, Boston already had Rafael Devers, a three-time All-Star at third who last season earned MVP votes for the fifth time in his eighth season. And Devers did not seem open to the idea of moving from the position where he has played 951 games for Boston since he joined the team in 2017.
“Third base is my position,” Devers told reporters through an interpreter shortly after the Bregman signing on February 15. “It’s what I play. I don’t know what their plans are. I know we had a conversation. I made it clear on what my desires were. Whatever happens from here, I don’t know.”
The situation has not become any clearer since spring training games began. It hasn’t helped that Devers has yet to suit up for any of those games, as he continues working his way back from shoulder issues that plagued him for much of the 2024 season, and his anticipated spring debut was pushed back from Wednesday.
“He asked me for more live BPs, so we’ll be good with that,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “We’ll see where we are over the weekend, but timing-wise, he’s off. I’m not worried about him.”
Boston Front Office Could Opt For Move That ‘Alleviates This Logjam’
GettyRafael Devers has made it clear that he wants to play third base for the Boston Red Sox.
Cora should at the very least be concerned about the issue of who will play where for the Red Sox as the regular season approaches. With several players vying for only so many spots, MLB Network’s Jon Morosi said Boston’s front office could make a move.
“I think at some point, there will be a trade that alleviates this logjam,” Morosi said during the March 5 episode of “Hot Stove.” “I don’t think it’s going to be (a trade involving) Devers, I don’t think it’s going to be during this spring training, but the quandary that they are in right now in terms of the depth of position players is not about to just simply resolve itself in the coming days.”
It has been suggested that Bregman could play second base for Boston, a concept that Bregman is reportedly open to doing. But as Harold Reynolds noted in the conversation with Morosi, Bregman has not played an inning of spring ball at second base, and a late switch to that spot seems highly unlikely.
“You’ve got two big things with Bregman,” Morosi stressed. “No. 1, he is the reigning Gold Glove winner at third base in the American League. Typically, you do not move a player after he wins a Gold Glove, no matter what jersey he is wearing. And the second part is … if he was going to move to second base, you would have been shouting that from the mountain tops, shouting that from the top of Fenway Park on the first day of spring training. They did not do that, so … that says to me, Bregman’s your third baseman.”
Morosi said two alternatives for Devers would be to accept moving to designated hitter, “which is not easy,” or move to first base.
“But oh, by the way, they still have Triston Casas there,” Morosi said.
Morosi noted the “ton of repetitions” that Kristian Campbell has gotten at second base, and he said that Marcelo Mayer has done very well behind Trevor Story at shortstop, “which certainly could add an element of intrigue for the Rd Sox later on this year.”
Red Sox Have ‘A Lot of Questions’ at Several Spots
GettyRafael Devers batted .272 with 28 home runs and 83 RBIs for Boston last season.
Other options at DH include Masataka Yoshida, who is still on a throwing program as he rehabs from shoulder surgery but has impressed the team with his offensive game in the spring.
“If Yoshida is going to be your DH potentially, what does that mean for Devers?” Morosi said. “There’s a lot of questions right now.”
And no bigger question than who will be playing third base when Boston opens the season at Texas on March 27.
“Unless the rules of the game have changed significantly, this question remains: Can you possibly have two third basemen in your lineup at the same time? And the answer is no, you can’t,” Morosi stressed. “So you have to decide between Bregman and Devers, and that question … is not going away any time soon.”
“That first game in Texas, we’ll do whatever is good for the Boston Red Sox, and they’re all on board,” Cora said to MLB Network. “There’s a lot of conversations, and we’ll see what happens.”
Red Sox May Seek Trade to Fix Third Base ‘Quandary’