Alex Cora Addresses The Looming Alex Bregman Question That Every Red Sox Fan Should Be Concerned About
Five days after the conclusion of the 2025 World Series - a little less than a month from now in early November - is the deadline for Alex Bregman to opt out of his contract with the Red Sox. And every report says that he'll do so, forgoing the final two years and $80 million on his contract to become a free agent.
I am on record that the team should make bringing him back the offseason's top priority. There are plenty of "whispers' out there that the Red Sox understand how important Bregman is and will do whatever it takes to bring him back, assuming he opts out.
Nice words, but they're just words, for now.
Alex Cora didn't speak much at the Red Sox season-ending press conference on Monday. In fact, he spent most of the almost 50-minute event sitting and looking like this.
Just staring at the table and not moving his head when Craig Breslow was talking. He had some weird body language going on, in my opinion.
Anyway, Cora opened up on Bregman on Thursday's '310 The Left Podcast.'
"I feel and I know he's the only guy that is going to make that his mindset of what he's going to do," Cora said. But you know, I'm going to stay positive. I'm going to stay very positive.
"There's a guy, you know, he chose us last year because of the right reasons. He wanted to be in on a playoff team. He wanted to play in Fenway Park. He wanted to be part of the organization. And since day one, he's given 100% to us, you know, talking to the kids, talking to the veteran players, the way he handled the media. The way he impacted the community.
"Adding up all that stuff, I'm going to stay positive about it. The kid is a really good player, and he's a great person."
"I don't think I have to let him know how I feel about him. I think it's very clear how I see it. But at the same time, respecting the space of his family…making sure you give him that space is very important.
If he likes Fenway and wants to go back to the playoffs, well, Boston is the spot for him.
But I don't think Alex Cora can do much about it at this point. This is about Craig Breslow working with Bregman and Super Agent Scott Boras to figure it out. The Red Sox are one of the most flush organizations in baseball. This is not the Tampa Bay Rays, even if they've tried to act like a small-market team in recent years. Money should not be an issue.
It's worth noting my old co-worker at WEEI, Rob Bradford, says some people in the organization think Bregman stays on his current deal.
"While murmurs around baseball keep suggesting it will be almost certain that the third baseman opts out of his deal, some in the organization still believe there is a good chance he stays."
Sure, and I wish I were 6-foot tall and could dunk a basketball. We all have dreams.
There are some significant moves the Red Sox need to make in the offseason. But it starts with making sure Bregman is back. He is an essential piece to the puzzle.
For now, Alex Cora is staying positive. Let's check back in a month, around Bregman's opt-out deadline, and see how he and the Red Sox Nation feel then.