MLB Insider Urges Red Sox To Spend $200 Million For Two-Time All-Star Free Agent

Time for the Red Sox to break the bank?

Aug 24, 2023; Houston, Texas, USA; Boston Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers (11) is tagged out in a rundown by Houston Astros third baseman Alex Bregman (2) during the second inning at Minute Maid Park. Mandatory Credit: Erik Williams-Imagn Images / Erik Williams-Imagn Images

The Boston Red Sox and Alex Bregman have been giving each other the staredown.

Sure, there are other Bregman suitors on the market now. We keep hearing about how the Detroit Tigers are gung-ho about reuniting him with manager A.J. Hinch, and the Toronto Blue Jays are always looking for the next person to throw money at.

But the Red Sox are supposed to win those kinds of bidding wars. They haven't done so recently, yet all one has to do is look to the previous decade to remember a time when Boston was fielding baseball's highest payrolls and winning championships.

Bregman fits the Red Sox's exact need--a right-handed bat, with a swing perfectly tailored for Fenway Park, and who can hit at the top of the lineup. But so far, it doesn't seem as though their pursuit is all that aggressive.

On Monday, NBC Sports Boston insider John Tomase took the Red Sox to task for their pursuit of Bregman, saying the team needed to be willing to meet the two-time All-Star's asking price of $200 million if that's what it takes to bring him to Fenway.

"The Red Sox desperately need a right-handed bat, especially after losing 30-homer outfielder Tyler O'Neill, but they weren't a factor on Teoscar Hernandez before he rejoined the Dodgers, and they haven't been linked to Silver Slugging switch hitter Anthony Santander," Tomase said.

"It's starting to feel like they might go the bargain route again, which is wildly frustrating, because they're so close. Bregman is the boldest move left, and even at $200 million, it would be money well spent."

Bregman, 30, had a .768 OPS and 26 home runs in a miniature down year in 2024. He still racked up 4.1 bWAR, which would have been second-best among Red Sox position players behind Jarren Duran.

Of all hitters ever to have at least 95 plate appearances at Fenway, Bregman owns the highest OPS in history (1.245).

That sounds like the kind of hitter the Red Sox should want hitting at their stadium every day if possible. Frustratingly, though, it's still not clear how seriously the Red Sox are in on Bregman.

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