The Boston Red Sox are facing a shocking outlook, as not only Rafael Devers (29) but also Alex Bregman (31) may be traded.
Major League Baseball's official media, MLB.com, reported on the 22nd (Korea time), "There are less than six weeks remaining before the trade deadline. The market is still in a wait-and-see mode. While several teams may lean towards selling players, currently there are not many teams willing to part with players. As of Saturday (22nd), 24 teams out of the 30 in Major League Baseball are within six games of the postseason, and 22 teams are within three games," introducing trade candidates that could shake up the trade market.
The outlook regarding Boston is interesting. The team has recorded 40 wins and 38 losses this season, with a win percentage of .513, placing them 4th in the American League East and 3rd in the Wild Card standings. Currently, they occupy one of the postseason spots. However, MLB.com noted, "It is hard to find a team with as intriguing a path as the Red Sox. No one can predict what they will decide after making the shocking decision to trade Rafael Devers to the Giants on the 16th."
"What complicates the situation is that the team has shown upward momentum, winning 11 out of their last 14 games since trading Devers," mentioned MLB.com. "If there are no significant struggles over the next five weeks, the Red Sox could switch to being 'buyers,' allowing them to utilize the funds saved from trading Devers in new ways. However, there is no guarantee that the current momentum will continue. Ultimately, the team has let go of its best hitter, and with the exception of ace Garrett Crochet, the starting rotation is unstable. Depending on circumstances, the Red Sox may return to being 'sellers.'"
Boston has had significant conflicts with their best hitter, Devers. Devers has recorded a career batting average of .278 over 1,058 games in Major League Baseball (4094 at-bats, 1,140 hits), with 216 home runs, 699 RBIs, 664 runs scored, 33 stolen bases, and an OPS of .859. He debuted in the big leagues with Boston in 2017 and has only played for the team until this season. In January 2023, he signed a contract extension worth $331 million (approximately 4.546 trillion won) for 11 years.
However, issues arose when Boston signed free agent third baseman Alex Bregman for $120 million (approximately 164.9 billion won) over three years, despite having Devers as their starting third baseman. Devers openly protested the team's attempt to designate him as a designated hitter, and while it seemed like the conflict was briefly resolved, another conflict arose when Boston tried to use Devers as a first baseman after the injury of starting first baseman Triston Casas.
As the situation became increasingly serious, Boston's owner, John Henry, flew to Kansas City, where the team was on an away game, to meet with Devers. However, the situation remained unresolved. Ultimately, Boston pushed for a trade involving Devers, sending him to San Francisco in exchange for Jordan Hicks, Kyle Harrison, James Tibbs III, and José Bello.
Losing Devers is expected to have a significant impact on Boston's overall performance. While they have maintained good results so far, there is a high possibility that they will fall behind in the standings competition. The trade candidate identified by MLB.com happens to be Bregman, the very reason for Devers' trade. "If the Red Sox were to return to being sellers, they could initiate a trade to prevent Bregman from leaving without any compensation," MLB.com predicted, noting, "Bregman signed a $120 million contract with Boston last offseason but has the option to opt out after the 2025 season."
After acquiring Bregman and trading away Devers, if Bregman is also traded again, it seems Boston will find it difficult to avoid significant criticism from fans. Attention is focused on how Boston will proceed for the remainder of the season.
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