Latest Free Agent Signing is Bad News for Red Sox's Alex Bregman Pursuit

At a time when most of the splashy moves have already been made, and a number of high-profile free agents are off the market, one move may have slipped under the radar that should raise some concerns for the Boston front office and Red Sox fans.

After whiffing on several major free agent targets to fill their third base hole, the Mariners decided to re-sign infielder Jorge Polanco to a one-year deal for $7 million. His lone season in Seattle was a down year, as he hit .213, which was easily the worst of his 11-season career, and he required knee surgery after the season.

Despite this, he is still a .263 career hitter with team familiarity at a position where Seattle desperately needed help. After rejecting his $12 million option and playing the market, it made sense for the Mariners to take the risk for a $5 million discount.

While the Red Sox were not pursuing him, they still suffer from the fact that Seattle was not the only team interested in Polanco. The Houston Astros had outwardly been considering him as a backup option in case star free agent third baseman Alex Bregman departed.

The career .272 hitter has strung together three consecutive 4+ WAR seasons despite being past his dominant All-Star form from his 2018 and 2019 seasons. As he enters his age-31 season, he has still drawn considerable interest from teams seeking a reliable infield bat.

One of those teams just so happens to be the Red Sox. Despite having their third baseman in Rafael Devers, Boston has been seeking a stronger infield with Trevor Story's injury history. They made several strong additions to their rotation, adding aces Walker Buehler and Garrett Crochet, but they have still been looking to bolster their young lineup with a consistent veteran bat that they have sorely needed.

Unfortunately for them, the already crowded field of teams bidding for Bregman just got more competitive, as Polanco was the failsafe for Houston if they could not retain their star. Now Boston's notoriously cheap front office will have to match more intense offers from an Astros team for which Bregman has become a cornerstone.

Add a more emboldened Houston to the bidding war with the Cubs and Tigers, and you have a spend-off that the Red Sox may not be able to win.

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