Red Sox Manager Alex Cora Wants This $119 Million Free Agent 'Badly,' Per Insider

Can the skipper make it happen?

Aug 22, 2023; Houston, Texas, USA; Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora (13) laughs before the game against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

As spring training officially arrives, the Boston Red Sox are still engaged in pursuits typically reserved for the dead of winter.

The Red Sox still need a right-handed bat to add to their lineup, and there's really only one big name left on the market. That's longtime Houston Astros third baseman Alex Bregman, who has had an excruciatingly slow free agency to this point.

Entering his age-31 season, Bregman hasn't been the same player the last few years that he was at his peak in 2019, when he crushed 41 home runs. But he's still extremely valuable, and he knows it, which is why he and agent Scott Boras have held out to this point in hopes of securing at least a six-year contract.

On Tuesday, ESPN's Jeff Passan took a pulse check on Bregman's market, and attempted to explain why it was taking so long for the two-time All-Star to find a contract to his liking, including the Red Sox's role in that process.

"Now, it's worth noting most of the teams pursuing Bregman have reasons not to commit," Passan wrote. "The Red Sox's best hitter (Rafael Devers) is a third baseman, and they've got two high-ceiling infield prospects on the way in Kristian Campbell and Marcelo Mayer."

But Passan also noted that there was pressure for the Red Sox to go after Bregman- both externally, from frustrated fans, and internally, from manager Alex Cora, who was once Bregman's bench coach with the Houston Astros.

"He has got backers. Red Sox manager Alex Cora wants Bregman badly, and the Red Sox guaranteeing only $52.3 million to free agents this winter has done little to reinvigorate a fan base still smarting from half a decade of relative penny-pinching," he remarked.

The Red Sox haven't been willing to go over the four-year mark for Bregman, according to multiple reports, so they won't be able to land him if he holds firm on his long-term deal ask. But if and when he becomes amenable to shorter deals, Cora could possibly help push things across the finish line.

It all comes down to money. Spotrac projects a four-year, $119 million deal, and at this point, it seems like Bregman will either get much more or much less. It will be fascinating to see which uniform he's donning on Opening Day.

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