As the end of baseball season approaches, so does Alex Bregman's first opt-out in his contract with the Boston Red Sox. Recent reports that the third baseman will wait until the offseason to discuss a potential extension with Boston have fans nervous about which other teams will try to swoop in and sign him.
But Bregman recently entered a new partnership that has Sox fans thinking that he may be determined to stick in Boston for the long haul. The third baseman has created a beer with Samuel Adams, a Boston-based brewery and local staple. The brew is called "Bregman's Beer," and he distributed some of the limited-edition drinks at Sam Adams' downtown Boston taproom, one of the two locations where Sox fans can purchase the beer.
Bregman is hardly the first Boston athlete to team up with Sam Adams — Red Sox legend David Ortiz created his own signature beer in 2016, and Celtics icons Kevin Garnett and Derrick White have appeared in TV ads with the company. Even the Red Sox have embraced Bregman's partnership and posted a picture of him toasting with his beer to celebrate a home run he hit on August 12.
Alex Bregman partners with Samuel Adams to create signature beer, as Red Sox legends before him have done
After his beer's release, Bregman sang Boston's praises and said he made his pale ale for Red Sox fans.
“They’ve embraced me as the new guy and we wanted to create a beer they can drink while watching Red Sox baseball games. Had a lot of fun creating it, and looking forward to everyone enjoying them, and watching the Red Sox win some baseball games,” Bregman said to Maria D'Agostino of 7 News WHDH.
Bregman's great love for Boston isn't enough to be certain he'll re-sign with the Sox this offseason, though. The veteran has posted a .299/.379/.542 slash line and a .921 OPS through 76 games, the best offensive metrics of his career. Much of his success has come from his swing being so well-suited to Fenway Park's dimensions — he's batting .315/.422/.583 with a 1.006 OPS there through 59 games in his career — which could be justification enough to keep him in Boston.
The Red Sox have much more cash available than they anticipated at the start of the season after the Rafael Devers trade. Bregman has gone to great lengths to show the Red Sox and Bostonians that he loves the city, and the Sox should make it worth his while by signing him to a long-term contract. If they don't, it will be disastrous for their third base plans next season.