The Boston Red Sox thought they had a chance with Xander Bogaerts. There were reports that the two sides were meeting throughout the day on Wednesday and that there was momentum towards a deal. The Red Sox may have been keeping one of their own for once.
So much for that. Not only did Bogaerts sign with the Padres, but the Red Sox were not particularly close. Alex Speier of the Boston Globe reported that the Red Sox offered a six year deal for approximately $160 million, nowhere near the 11 years and $280 he received from San Diego.
Boston Red Sox strange value for Xander Bogaerts
The Red Sox were not even the runner up for Bogaerts’ services. According to Pete Abraham, also from the Boston Globe, at least three or four other teams were willing to pay Bogaerts over $200 million over the course of their offers. The Red Sox were never going to get close to that number.
Bogaerts is not the first player that the Red Sox had a completely different valuation on and he will not be the last. The Red Sox have had a habit of letting their own players go while bringing in replacements in free agency. It is almost as though the phrases ‘familiarity breeds contempt’ and ‘the grass is greener on the other side’ are their guiding principles.
This is also a move that one could see coming last year. The Red Sox signed Trevor Story last offseason and put him at second base, but he always seemed to be Bogaerts’ replacement from the moment that their interest was known. They were never going to pay Bogaerts since they already had a shortstop on the roster.
Now the Red Sox need to pivot to a mediocre second base market. Jean Segura and Brandon Drury are the top options available at the position. Maybe the Red Sox feel that Jeter Downs is ready or will look at the trade market. They will need to open the checkbook one way or another. It was just never going to be to pay Bogaerts.
The Boston Red Sox were never going to realistically pay Xander Bogaerts what he was worth. As it turns out, they were laughably far away.