The Boston Red Sox have several roster decisions to make in the second half. But one extension decision may just take the cake.
Alex Bregman returned from injury the weekend before the All-Star Break, amidst the Red Sox's 10-game winning streak, and played in two games. Before his injury, he posted a .299 batting average with 11 HRs, 35 RBIs, a .935 OPS, and a .553 slugging percentage. While he had the second-highest strikeout rate (18%) in his career since 2016 (24%), his home run rate is at its highest (4.7%) since his MVP-caliber season in 2019 (5.9%), and his exit velocity is the highest of his career at 92.1.
Alex Bregman's Future in Boston Remains Uncertain
He signed a three-year, $120M contract with Boston in the offseason, with player opt-outs for the 2026 and 2027 seasons. Just recently, at the beginning of July, his agent, Scott Boras, made it known that Bregman wants to stay with the Red Sox long term. However, it seems that Breslow hasn't touched that subject yet.
This doesn't mean that Breslow won't want to extend Bregman. Jon Heyman stated that both Breslow and Bregman "wouldn't mind getting something done." If the Red Sox make a good offer, it's most likely that Alex will take the deal and stay. If there are any signs indicating it, both sides want to, but the timing isn't right. Bregman's trying to figure himself out after that quad injury that took him out for over a month, and Craig is focused on the trade deadline and how the team itself is performing.
Breslow may be doing the right thing. He's trying to see how the Red Sox perform and how Bregman is going to perform after his injury. If they both do well, maybe both parties will come together and figure something out. But this may not happen until after the deadline, and Breslow's extra pressure of bolstering the lineup is temporarily over.