The reunion that plenty of reporters and insiders around MLB saw as inevitable has not come to fruition this offseason. Alex Bregman has signed, but not with the Boston Red Sox.
Bregman and the Chicago Cubs have agreed on a five-year, $175 million contract, first reported by MLB insider Jon Heyman of the New York Post. The Cubs and Red Sox were reportedly among the final teams left in his market — the Toronto Blue Jays were likely to leave the market after their signing of corner infielder Kazuma Okamoto and the Arizona Diamondbacks couldn't take on the additional payroll after their decision to keep Ketel Marte.
The news of Bregman's departure comes just hours after Alex Cora told reporters "the ball is in his court" at Fenway Fest on Saturday afternoon. Reports that Boston made Bregman an "aggressive" offer surfaced earlier this week, but it must not have been aggressive enough, since he took the ball straight to Chicago.
Bregman signing elsewhere hurts not only because he's a great leader and his swing is tailor-made for Fenway Park, but because the Red Sox traded Rafael Devers to accommodate him. Now, it's like they did it for nothing. Maybe Bregman made his choice based on how the Red Sox and Cubs treat their franchise players. If so, Boston didn't stand a chance.
Red Sox lose Alex Bregman to Cubs hours after Alex Cora said 'the ball is in his court'
Bregman was the best all-around infielder on the free agent market, with top-tier defense, reliable offense and 20-25 home runs in a good season. Eugenio Suárez is still a free agent, but he's a short-term solution as he's entering his age-35 season and he's a poor defender. Bo Bichette is also a poor defender and he's not a third baseman, but he's younger and could be a multi-year player in Boston's infield.
Bichette is demanding significantly more money than Bregman, however, with the latest reports sitting at $300 million. If the Red Sox were unwilling to go to $175 for Bregman and refused to pay $150 million for Pete Alonso, another near-flawless fit at Fenway Park, it's hard to imagine them going all-in on Bichette.
But they hardly have any other choice. Suárez or Yoán Moncada should start practicing their Boston accent.