Alex Bregman doesn’t have a preference on which position he wants to play for Red Sox
"I just want to play wherever it helps the team win."
When the Red Sox came to terms on a deal with Alex Bregman on Wednesday, one of the first questions that came to mind was where he would play in the field.
It had been reported shortly after the two sides came to an agreement that Bregman would play second base after primarily playing third base over his nine seasons with the Astros. But Alex Cora refused to make a commitment on where Bregman would play when he spoke with reporters on Saturday.
Bregman finally got his chance to opine on the matter when he was officially introduced as a member of the Red Sox on Sunday. However, Bregman didn’t take a hard-line position on where he wants to play, either.
“I just want to play wherever it helps the team win,” Bregman told reporters. “I’ll leave that decision to AC [Alex Cora], and I’ll just do whatever he tells me to do and try and be there every single day, work hard and be ready to win.”
The Red Sox’ situation at second base has largely been unsettled since the final years of Dustin Pedroia’s career as he missed nearly every game over his last three years. So, putting Bregman there would give the Red Sox some stability at second base in the interim that they haven’t had in years.
Bregman has only played at second base for 32 innings over his MLB career. He’s also been one of the game’s top fielding third basemen since he was called up in 2016, winning a Gold Glove last season. Considering Bregman’s strong defensive play at third base, it would make sense for the Red Sox to keep him there as Rafael Devers has struggled at the position throughout his career.
Cora continued to insist, though, that Bregman could be a good second baseman when he spoke with reporters Saturday, citing his “quick hands” and “good footwork.”
“He’s a Gold Glove third baseman. He hasn’t played second base in the big leagues. I believe he can be a Gold Glove second baseman, too,” Cora said.
As the Red Sox’ first full-squad session of spring training is on Monday, Cora and chief baseball officer Craig Breslow acknowledged that they still have some time before they have to make a decision. Cora shared that Bregman will take reps at second and third base with some reps at shortstop sprinkled in throughout spring training.
“There’s other stuff that comes into play as far as like roster construction, what’s better for the team, what can be the best lineup, and competition comes into play,” Cora said on deciding where Bregman will play.
“He’ll play in Texas [for Opening Day], I guarantee you that. He’ll be in the lineup. Where? We’ll talk about it later.”
Regardless of where Bregman plays, Breslow is happy to have a player of his caliber at the plate and on the field with the Red Sox.
“The most important thing was getting Alex into a Red Sox uniform as an elite defender,” Breslow told reporters on Sunday. “The conversations about where he’ll play are ongoing and when the time is right we’ll make that determination.
“But I think AC and I have an obligation to the team, to the organization and most importantly to our fans, to put the best offensive and defensive team on the field that we possibly can.”
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