The Boston Red Sox are set to face stiff competition this offseason in their pursuit to retain All-Star third baseman Alex Bregman.
The Red Sox signed Bregman to a three-year, $120 million contract last offseason, but after one season with the team, the 31-year-old opted out of his contract and will hit free agency. Bregman was named an All-Star this season, despite only playing 114 games for the Red Sox, and helped lead the team to its first postseason appearance since 2021.
ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported Tuesday that more teams have entered the Bregman sweepstakes, with the Philadelphia Phillies, Detroit Tigers and Chicago Cubs all expected to target the star third baseman in free agency.
“The Red Sox love Bregman, who opted out of the final two years and $80 million of his contract, and won’t close the door on a reunion despite having Marcelo Mayer ready to play third,” Passan wrote. “Detroit and Chicago, which pursued him last winter but came up short, will rejoin the fray, with Philadelphia lurking as it juggles multiple potential paths.”
Bregman is a winning baseball player. The 31-year-old has never missed the postseason in his 10 seasons in the big leagues, and has won two World Series titles back when he was playing with the Houston Astros. Though Boston gave Bregman a contract with an extremely high annual salary of $40 million, he likely won’t see a contract come near that figure this offseason.
More importantly, at 31, Bregman will likely try to get what will be his last long-term contract he can, with Spotrac projecting him to sign a four-year contract worth roughly $110 million. The Red Sox want to bring their starting third baseman back, but with so many teams expected to pursue Bregman, it will be interesting to see what they offer him.
More MLB: Insider Suggests Dodgers Would Pay ‘Steep Price’ for Plan B Red Sox All-Star