Alex Bregman’s Contract Details Just Made Red Sox Look Worse

The Boston Red Sox have unsurprisingly been taking some heat since Saturday night.

Months of rumors swirled around the organization as the Alex Bregman sweepstakes kicked off. Boston made a great move to bring him to town in 2025. He was everything the club could've hoped for. Clearly, the Red Sox liked him too as the New York Post's Jon Heyman reported that the "word out there" is that Boston offered around $160 million to the All-Star third baseman. The Chicago Cubs won out with a five-year, $175 million deal.

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Missing out on the team's "priority" by a reported $15 million difference isn't what you want to see if you're a Red Sox fan. More negative news dropped on Sunday morning. The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal reported that $70 million of the $175 million Chicago offered Bregman is deferred.

The Red Sox missed the mark

"Source: $70M of the $175M is deferred," Rosenthal wrote. "Exact net present-day value is not known, but expected to be in range of $30M-$31M per season, source says."

Boston's luxury tax payroll is currently projected to be right around $240 million, per FanGraphs. This is just below the first CBT threshold of $244 million. After the first threshold, the next ones are $264 million, $284 million, and $304 million. Boston was the third-most valuable team in Major League Baseball in 2025, per Forbes. The New York Yankees came in at No. 1 and the Los Angeles Dodgers at No. 2. The Chicago Cubs came in at No. 4.

Currently, Spotrac has the Yankees' payroll estimated to be just over $277 million. Spotrac currently has the Dodgers' payroll projected to be just over $339 million.

After trading Rafael Devers away, the Red Sox arguably could've afforded any deal, regardless of deferrals. Add to the fact that $70 million was reportedly deferred, and it looks like the club just wasn't willing to meet the price tag.

Now, there is still time left in the offseason. Bo Bichette, Kyle Tucker, and Cody Bellinger are the top remaining offensive free agents. With Bregman not coming to town, maybe that leads to spending elsewhere. Lucas Giolito is still available, for example. But the Red Sox missed the mark on the Bregman market.

More MLB: Red Sox Shut Down Trade Rumor Before Losing Alex Bregman