Boston Red Sox: Ranking the team’s five All-Stars
![BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - JULY 01: Rafael Devers #11 of the Boston Red Sox celebrates with Xander Bogaerts #2 of the Boston Red Sox after hitting a 2 RBI home run in the bottom of the sixth inning of the game against the Kansas City Royals at Fenway Park on July 01, 2021 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Omar Rawlings/Getty Images) BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - JULY 01: Rafael Devers #11 of the Boston Red Sox celebrates with Xander Bogaerts #2 of the Boston Red Sox after hitting a 2 RBI home run in the bottom of the sixth inning of the game against the Kansas City Royals at Fenway Park on July 01, 2021 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Omar Rawlings/Getty Images)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/90f75b5354aabd78b65a97e2b94c70bc249ecd12dcbf9a5a982c3f55e1d5c5f7.jpg)
Boston Red Sox All-Star No. 2: Xander Bogaerts
For basically his entire career, Xander Bogaerts has been overlooked by the rest of the league.
Competing with guys like Carlos Correa and Francisco Lindor, it always felt like Bogaerts never got his fair consideration as one of the top shortstops in the game. That ended this season, as Bogaerts has been running laps around not only his fellow shortstops, but the vast majority on the majors as well.
Bogaerts continues to be one of the best all around hitters in the game. He appears to have traded some of his power for contact, as his .326 batting average would be the highest of his career. He has only hit 13 home runs just two seasons after mashing 33, but it has not affected his productivity whatsoever.
Bogaerts fielding still remains pretty much league average, as he’s already committed seven errors on the season. But his overall steady presence in the field has been key for the Sox infield all season. Aside from him, it’s been pretty much a rotating door of players all around him, so having that one constant night in and night out has been huge for a Boston team that just isn’t that good at fielding.
It’s been a blast to watch Bogaerts develop into one of the top players in the game. It feels like just yesterday he was a top prospect called up at the end of 2013 and helped the Sox nab a World Series ring. Fast forward to today, and he has fully reached his potential as the top shortstop in the game.
Bogaerts is the heart and soul of the team, and the only reason he isn’t the most important All-Star is because of how good the top player has been. But that shouldn’t take away from Bogaerts accomplishments. In a crowded field of shortstops in today’s game, Bogaerts has finally emerged as the best of them all.