BOSTON — After learning that Alex Bregman accepted a five-year, US$175 million contract with the Cubs instead of an aggressive recent offer from the Red Sox, top baseball operations executive Craig Breslow processed his disappointment and prepared to search for that last impact bat to round out a solid lineup.
When you’re in Breslow’s position, spending too much time thinking about what could have been is not a productive exercise. Especially with the start of spring training less than a month away.
“Any time you’re active trying to bring in a player, it’s disappointing to come up short,” Breslow said Sunday during a question-and-answer session with MassLive’s Chris Cotillo. “We do this job because we are competitive and we want to deliver a championship to our fans, and not getting a hire is an obstacle to that.”
The magnitude of the hurdle of losing Bregman will be determined in part by what move Breslow makes in response. Signing Bo Bichette, the top free agent available in the infield, would be the most obvious move. But there is strong competition for their services, and Breslow will keep an open mind.
“It’s going to sound repetitive, but we are open to any avenue that improves the team,” Breslow told Cotillo. “Free agency is an obvious path, but so are trades. We will try to continue adding offense, but betting on pitching and defense is also a way to increase our win total.”
Sources told MLB.com that Boston’s last offer to Bregman was for five years and $165 million. However, there were other differences between the two proposals. The Cubs offered a full no-trade clause. The Red Sox didn’t. Additionally, the deferred payments included in the deal with the Cubs will be disbursed significantly sooner than those offered by Boston.
Cotillo asked Breslow why he thinks Bregman, who gushed all last season about how much he liked playing in Boston, decided not to stay. Breslow declined to confirm whether the Red Sox have a club policy against no-trade clauses.
“Without going into the specific details of the negotiation, Alex and his family have earned the right to decide where they want to spend the next five years of their career,” Breslow said. “And although we hoped it would be here, we respect that right that they have earned. It would be naïve or unfair of me to assume what was most important in their decision process.”
Bregman, who signed a three-year contract with the Red Sox just 11 months ago, exercised the first of two opt-out clauses in that deal last November.
Bregman’s decision to leave after the first year has led Red Sox Nation to rethink the merits of trading star slugger Rafael Devers to the Giants in June. Although Devers had a good relationship with Bregman, he was upset when the Red Sox asked him to move to the designated hitter role so his new teammate could play third base.
When Triston Casas suffered a season-ending injury in early May, Breslow asked Devers to consider moving to first base. Devers refused. Owner John Henry made a special trip to a series between the Red Sox and Royals in Kansas City to intervene, to no avail. Devers was traded a month later. With the benefit of time, how does Breslow feel now that both Bregman and Devers are out?
“Rather than focusing on the particular details of these cases, what is most important is: 1) how we respond to improve our roster in the short term; and 2) how I can learn from these experiences and allow them to influence how I perform this role in the future,” Breslow said. “Neither of the two scenarios we face now is ideal, but both will be evaluated with a long-term view.”
Social media has exploded with criticism from fans since news broke Saturday night that Bregman was leaving. What is Breslow’s message to the fans who are obviously upset?
“I’m not going to minimize the impact Alex had on our season,” Breslow said. “He’s a great player with a strong leadership presence in our clubhouse. But this job requires balancing short- and long-term interests and making the best decisions for the organization, no matter how difficult they may be. That means sometimes you lose good players.”
“However, while we will enter the ’26 season with a different group, we will be no less determined to compete for the division and make a deep playoff run. I believe in the group we have as we continue to work to strengthen it. Our goal is to give our fans the season they deserve.”
