Throughout the past year the Red Sox told anyone who’d listen that re-signing Xander Bogaerts was the club’s top priority.
That was the message in Spring Training, at the trade deadline and every day of the offseason up until the moment Bogaerts signed an 11-year, $280 million deal with the San Diego Padres.
Losing Bogaerts was a massive blow, and if taking the club at its word it was also a serious organizational failure. Yet for all of the club’s talk, here is what the Red Sox have actually done over the past few years.
– Since signing Bogaerts to his previous contract in 2019, the club has drafted high school infielders with its first pick in three consecutive drafts, including potential franchise shortstop Marcelo Mayer No. 4 overall in 2021.
– The Red Sox signed Trevor Story, a two-time All-Star shortstop during his Colorado days, to a six-year, $140 million contract. The deal was by far the largest given under the current front office.
– Around the same time, the Red Sox lowballed Bogaerts with what amounted to a four-year, $90 million offer. The two sides never came close to reaching an agreement, even after the club raised its offers once free agency began.
Do these look like the actions of a club that believes locking up Bogaerts is its top priority?
At this point we have to face facts. If Bogaerts really was a part of the club’s long-term plans then the Red Sox would have found a way to lock him up. Instead they spent the last two years laying the groundwork for his departure, only willing to make a deal on the most favorable possible terms.
So what actually is the Red Sox plan?
It’s fair to bet Story will be Boston’s Opening Day shortstop. The club has already invested heavily in his success and he perfectly fits the profile of what the Red Sox are tying to become, which is a more athletic, dynamic club that can win in a variety of ways.
For all the concern about his arm strength and ability to handle shortstop, he does boast elite range, and as Chaim Bloom noted last week, you can only make the throw if you get to the ball first.
Boston’s unwillingness to commit to Bogaerts also speaks to how highly the club thinks of Mayer. The 20-year-old enjoyed a fantastic first full year as a professional and now ranks as the No. 12 prospect in the sport according to Baseball America. He could become a franchise cornerstone, and while it might be another two years before he’s ready for prime time, the Red Sox clearly don’t want to block his path to the majors.
We can only hope the club will do more to keep the seat warm than they did with first base these past couple of years while Triston Casas was working his way up through the system.
As for the rest of the lineup, the Red Sox will make some more moves. Most probably won’t satisfy a fanbase that grows more cynical by the day, though we could still see a big trade at some point. Bloom reportedly signed right-handed corner infielder/designated hitter Justin Turner on Sunday, and when all is said and done he’ll probably add another starting pitcher, a two-year placeholder for second base, an outfielder and maybe a catcher too.
Maybe we’ll even see a Rafael Devers extension, though at this point we probably shouldn’t get our hopes up until a deal is actually done.
Once Spring Training begins the roster should look a lot better and more complete than it does today. Losing Bogaerts to free agency doesn’t have to doom the Red Sox to another last place finish, and depending on how things shake out there might even be real reason for optimism that the club can finalize realize its long-stated goal of achieving sustainable success.
We should hope so, because at this point the fans are running out of patience, and if the Red Sox don’t turn things around soon it’s not going to be pretty.
Email: mcerullo@northofboston.com. Twitter: @MacCerullo.