Red Sox's Alex Cora Names Xander Bogaerts' Position Should He Return

Cora is not too worried about Bogaerts breaking down with age

Scott Neville | Oct 6, 2022

Red Sox's Alex Cora Names Xander Bogaerts' Position Should He Return /

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Will Xander Bogaerts have to switch positions should he return to the Boston Red Sox with elite defensive middle infielder Trevor Story already on the roster and a long history of lackluster production manning arguably the most important position on the diamond?

Red Sox manager Alex Cora put any questions of Bogey possibly moving to second or third base to bed. When asked how long the 30-year-old could play shortstop, he made it clear a switch is not happening any time soon.

"The way he trains, the way he moves, the way he goes about his business in the offseason, probably as long as he can handle it," Cora told reporters, as seen on NESN's broadcast Thursday. "His body hasn't changed in what, three or four years. When he changes he's getting more explosive and stronger so, I don't know.

"I can not answer in years but I do believe we saw strides this year and we just asked him to do just a few things (differently). So with his work ethic and the way he goes about it, time will tell but we do believe that he played really good this year just making a few adjustments."

Cora's claim of Bogaerts' strong defensive season can easily be backed by numbers, as he ranked No. 17 out of 144 shortstops in defensive runs saved with four in 1,249 2/3 innings.

There have been many rumors that Trevor Story would assume the position next season, but that only appears to remain possible if Bogaerts departs. Based on the end-of-season press conference Thursday, Bogaerts landing with a new team next season is not a part of the plan.

Bloom said that he would start working on a new deal with Bogey "right away" and even gave a timeline for when he'd like the deal done.

More MLB: Here's When Red Sox's Chaim Bloom Aims To Reach New Deal With Xander Bogaerts

Published Oct 6, 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