MLB Insider Adds Context To Red Sox’s Interest In Alex Bregman

The Boston Red Sox remain in the running for free-agent infielder Alex Bregman.

Boston is rumored to have already undergone a meeting with the two-time All-Star, and a signing would address the club’s obvious need for a right-handed bat. But the Red Sox aren’t alone. Boston skipper Alex Cora, who shared the dugout with Bregman during his lone season as a coach for the Houston Astros in 2017, is said to be strongly campaigning amid the Red Sox’s pursuit for the 30-year-old.

“I do think that the Red Sox and the (Detroit) Tigers are the most likely landing spots for Bregman,” MLB insider Jon Heyman said on Bleacher Report’s “B/R Walk-Off” stream Wednesday. “They both had meetings with Bregman and, to me, they make sense. The people who’ve coached and managed Bregman, they absolutely love him. You have Alex Cora with Boston, you have A.J. Hinch with Detroit. They both want him badly.”

Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow has already delivered improvements to the team’s pitching staff, but the lineup remains untouched — besides losing Tyler O’Neill, the team’s home runs leader last season, in free agency. Breslow’s bolstered the bullpen with Aroldis Chapman and the rotation with Garrett Crochet and Walker Buehler. That still leaves the right-handed bat void unfilled.

Bregman, fresh off a nine-year stint that included two World Series championships in Houston, fits the very profile.

Boston could utilize Bregman either at third or second base, giving Cora some lineup flexibility depending on whatever matchup presents itself. Bregman is a playoff-experienced leader and winner capable of commanding youngsters in a clubhouse, and the Red Sox are entering 2025 looking to shake off their three straight postseason misses.

Bregman batted .260 with 26 home runs, 30 doubles and 75 RBIs, recording a 4.1 WAR across 145 games with the Astros last season. He’s a career .270 hitter, logged a .972 fielding percentage and has guarded every infield position besides first base.

Cora’s endorsement of Bregman’s potential arrival has been noted this offseason.

“Alex is a good player, man,” Cora told reporters in December, per USA Today’s Bob Nightengale. “He’s a complete player. He’s a player that’s been on winning teams his whole career. Good defender. Offensively he’s really good. He’s a guy that a lot of people are talking about, and I do believe he can impact a big league team, a championship-caliber team. He’s that type of player.”

Hinch, Detroit’s current skipper, managed Bregman for five seasons in Houston.