Ken Rosenthal Names Players Red Sox Will Pivot To If They Don’t Sign Alex Bregman
Not long after the Boston Red Sox traded for Willson Contreras on Sunday night, fans’ attention shifted to Alex Bregman.
MassLive’s Chris Cotillo reported that the Red Sox and Bregman’s team are still in conversation. That’s the good news for fans hoping for a Breggy return. The bad news is that Boston isn’t the only suitor involved.
The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reiterated on Monday morning that interest from the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Toronto Blue Jays is real. Rosenthal also wrote a step-by-step guide to what the Red Sox will likely do if Bregman lands elsewhere.
“They could turn around and sign (Bo) Bichette, the younger player … (projected) to receive eight years, $212 million,” Rosenthal asserted (subscription required).” And if they played Bichette at second, perhaps they would be comfortable installing (Marcelo) Mayer at third.”
“If not Bichette, the Sox could trade for (Ketel) Marte or (Brendan) Donovan,” Rosenthal continued. “Either of those moves, though, would come at a steep price in prospects. At this point, the Red Sox probably are disinclined to trade a top young arm such as Payton Tolle or Connelly Early when they already have parted with some of their pitching depth.”
“And if the Red Sox struck out on Bregman and Bichette, failed to trade for Marte or Donovan and were uncomfortable committing to Mayer, they would need to find an external solution at third.”
In identifying an “external solution,” Rosenthal proceeded to name, in order of appeal, Kazuma Okamoto, Eugenio Suárez, Isaac Paredes, and Nolan Arenado as backups to the backup plan.
Ultimately, though, Rosenthal returned to either Bregman or Bichette as the names that matter, saying that, “the Sox are in perfect position to strike.”