The Boston Red Sox's 2025-26 offseason began with roster bloat and uncertainties all around. Some of their excess starting pitching has been moved in trades, but the outfield logjam and infield positioning questions remain.
Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow earlier this winter made sure to note that almost any trades could be on the table to improve the team, but he's also left room for the team to keep all its outfielders into the start of the 2026 season. Some fans have floated a permanent position change to second base for Ceddanne Rafaela in the event that the Sox don't trade an outfielder.
Fortunately, a few higher ups in Boston have already refuted this potential move, including Craig Breslow, who said the Red Sox will try to keep the Gold Glover in center field as much as possible. Alex Cora also weighed in during his November 19 appearance on the "Foul Territory" podcast.
"He has a lot of value [in the infield] but he's elite in center field. He's a game changer. The one thing we're going to challenge him [with] again is offensively," Cora said. "Challenging him offensively, challenging him physically, get bigger and stronger, and then defensively, just keeping him as long as possible in center field because he is that good."
Red Sox have no business moving Gold Glove-winning outfielder Ceddanne Rafaela to second base for 2026
Fans who support a position change for Rafaela cite his athleticism as a main reason for a move. The Red Sox have lacked an everyday second baseman since Dustin Pedroia's eventually career-ending injury in 2017, and Rafaela is certainly athletic and versatile enough to make it work at the keystone, but he shouldn't have to.
Rafaela is one of the best outfielders, if not one of the best defenders in MLB overall. He clocked 21 outs above average, 99th percentile range and 21 defensive runs saved, the second-most among all outfielders last season. He, Wilyer Abreu (a two-time Gold Glove winner) and Roman Anthony could make for one of the best defensive outfields in MLB and the Red Sox shouldn't give that up so easily when they have all the money in the world to sign capable infielders with. If they can't muster that, they have Marcelo Mayer, also a rock-solid defender, to play any available infield positions.
Rafaela is prone to streakiness at the plate, but his offensive production took a severe hit when the Red Sox moved him into the infield last season. He batted .116/.150/.126 over 32 games as a second baseman in his career — in order for Boston to field a better team than last year, Rafaela needs to be at his all-around best, and playing second base hasn't worked out so far.
After another season of league-worst defense with 116 errors last year, the Red Sox have been vocal about their hopes to improve the defense across the diamond. Moving Rafaela could have the opposite effect. Not only would he have to learn how to play second base as well as he plays center field, his outstanding showing in the outfield saved the Red Sox on dozens of occasions.
If the Red Sox want a capable second baseman, they should sign or trade for one, which they have more than enough money and resources to do. They could otherwise reunite with Alex Bregman and move Mayer and his hallmark smooth glove to second base. Rafaela is simply too good in center field to move somewhere else, and both Breslow and Cora agree.