Red Sox Boss Silences Popular Alex Bregman Narrative

The Boston Red Sox are in a good place right now heading into the 2026 Major League Baseball season, even without Alex Bregman with the organization any longer.

Boston missed out on the All-Star third baseman and pivoted by signing All-Star starting pitcher Ranger Suárez and then eventually acquiring infielder Caleb Durbin from the Milwaukee Brewers. Boston's roster arguably is ready to go. Soon enough, the noise around the Red Sox and Bregman will die down. But the conversation picked up steam once again as Spring Training opened. The reason for that is that Red Sox president and chief executive officer Sam Kennedy and chairman Tom Werner both addressed the loss.

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"We're so grateful to Alex Bregman and what he meant to us," Kennedy said. "But look, again, when you have choices the way he did, you work really hard to become a free agent and perform at that level. He chose a different path, and we wish him well. We look forward to seeing him at the end of the season at Fenway. ... If Alex Bregman wanted to be here, ultimately he’d be here."

The Red Sox opened up about the Alex Bregman loss

Feb 11, 2026; Mesa, AZ, USA; Chicago Cubs Alex Bregman (3) gets ready to hit during spring training camp at Sloan Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images | Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

One popular talking point throughout the Bregman saga was the idea of a no-trade clause and the fact that Boston did not give him one. It led to a firestorm against the organization.

Werner was asked about the team's view of no-trade clauses and confirmed that the team doesn't have a blanket policy against the idea, as transcribed by Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe.

"I think people have made too much of that. I don’t think that was the dispositive issue,” Werner said. “ ... We don’t [have a policy against no-trade clauses]. There’s nothing more I can say."

He also noted that he thinks there were more reasons behind the decision than just money.

“I don’t think that it was simply about the fact that he was offered a bit more money in Chicago. I think that he’s happy to be in Arizona [for spring training] where his family is. I have enormous respect for Alex, but it wasn’t meant to be and we moved on," Werner said, as transcribed by Abraham.

It's unfortunate that things didn't work out between the two sides, but the Red Sox are in a very good place as an organization and should be able to compete in 2026. The 2025 season was great with Bregman, but Boston is on to the next.

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