The Boston Red Sox’s Alex Bregman signing means a lot more than simply adding a good right-handed bat to the top of the batting order.
Since Boston’s last championship in 2018, there’s been a noticeable drop-off in spending, which has created a lot of ill will toward ownership group Fenway Sports Group, headed by principal owner John Henry.
Spending doesn’t necessarily equate to success, but it certainly gives teams a much better opportunity to win. And the Red Sox, a franchise used to winning, has missed the playoffs three times in a row for the first time since the early 1990s.
WIth the Bregman signing, it appears the times may finally be changing.
Speaking at Bregman’s introductory press conference at the Red Sox spring training complex on Sunday, super-agent Scott Boras talked about the noticeable change in the urgency Henry and the Red Sox front office had shown this offseason compared to the post-2018 years.
“I think it was after (Juan) Soto signed. I could tell, from knowing John back from the Marlins, that he had a real onus about ‘We need to really do things differently than we’ve done before,’ ‘’ Boras said, per MassLive. ”I knew from the ownership level that they were really looking to correct what’s happened the last five or six years.”
“These owners have needs and ideals and their hope of what they do, a lot of it is attached to their own personal feelings. This is a point in time where I believe Red Sox ownership was again hungry for championship play and I think very, very exhausted with what’s happened the last few years here.”
Bregman’s three-year, $120 million deal makes Bregman the highest-paid Red Sox player ever in terms of average annual value. Boston is also projected to be $7 million over the first Competitive Balance Tax threshold, which they were well under throughout the 2024 season.
Perhaps most encouraging of all? The Red Sox are still talking as if they aren’t done adding. That was the message from manager Alex Cora on Friday and over the weekend, reports emerged that Boston had expressed interest in San Diego Padres ace Dylan Cease.
It’s time to get back to playing winning baseball. Thankfully, the Red Sox seem to be responding with the appropriate sense of urgency.
