Red Sox No Longer Favorites To Land Xander Bogaerts, New Team Emerges

Boston better act fast if they want to re-sign their unofficial captain

Scott Neville | Nov 25, 2022

Red Sox No Longer Favorites To Land Xander Bogaerts, New Team Emerges /

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It seems increasingly likely that the Boston Red Sox will regret allowing Xander Bogaerts to reach free agency.

There are three confirmed suiters for Bogaerts' services according to Red Sox beat writer Marino Pepén, and Boston was not on the top of the list.

Pepén ranked the teams in order of interest and earning potential. The Philadelphia Phillies were placed at the top, Boston came in second, and the San Diego Padres were third.

The Phillies' interest in Bogaerts has been well known, and likely led by Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski. After finishing as the runner-up in the World Series, the perennially aggressive Dombrowski certainly will be looking to make a major splash.

The Red Sox and Bogaerts have had a longstanding mutual interest in a new deal for a long time, but at some point, Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom needs to put a contract on the table that Bogaerts will not turn down.

The Padres' interest in Bogaerts has emerged very recently, and their commitment level is unknown. Pepén appears confident that a sizeable offer will be given to Bogaerts, if it hasn't already.

Reports such as Pepén's should be a reminder for the Red Sox front office that they will lose their star shortstop if they do not pay up, and soon. There's a good chance Bogaerts' departure could mark the final days for third baseman Rafael Devers as well.

Bogaerts is armed with the best agent in Major League Baseball, Scott Boras. He's not the guy to lowball, especially with a player of Bogaerts' caliber generating interest league-wide.

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Published Nov 25, 2022

SCOTT NEVILLE

Scott Neville covers the Boston Red Sox for Sports Illustrated's new page "Inside The Red Sox." Before starting "Inside The Red Sox", Neville attended Merrimack College, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media with a minor in Marketing. Neville spent all four years with Merrimack's radio station WMCK, where he grew as a radio/podcast host and producer. His propensity for being in front of a microphone eventually expanded to film, where he produced multiple short films alongside his then-roommate and current co-worker Stephen Mottram. On a journey that began as a way to receive easy credits via film classes, he received a call from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star Charlie Day. Day advised him to make a feature-length film, which he completed his senior year. While writing the film, Neville completed an internship for United Way as part of their NFL Partnership Program. Neville ran the blog for a team of interns and hosted an internet show called "United Way's NFL Partnership Series" where he interviewed NFL alumni. After college Neville wrote for SB Nation's "Over The Monster," a Red Sox sister site of the flagship brand. His work would eventually lead him to a job as a content producer with NESN, where he would cover all sports. After developing as a writer with the top regional network in the world, he was given the opportunity to join the Sports Illustrated Media Group in his current endeavor as the publisher of "Inside The Red Sox." The successful launch and quick rise of "Inside The Red Sox" led to Neville joining the Baseball Essential ownership group, a national baseball site under SIMG. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottNeville46 Email: nevilles@merrimack.edu