When Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow brought Alex Bregman to the Boston Red Sox, he knew there was bound to be some level of controversy.
Barely a week after the official signing, it’s hard to imagine he could’ve foreseen this level of drama ensuing.
The Red Sox seem to be very seriously considering putting Bregman at his usual third base position and moving Rafael Devers to designated hitter. And based on Devers’ widely publicized comments about a position change on Monday, it’s safe to say the three-time All-Star isn’t thrilled.
There are a lot of other variables in play–namely, whether Vaughn Grissom or Kristian Campbell seizes the second base job in spring training and effectively forces Bregman to third. But no matter what decision is made, someone is going to feel slighted, at least initially.
Breslow, who will have plenty of decision-making power in this instance along with manager Alex Cora, recently addressed Devers’ comments about not wanting to move off his long-time position.
“These things tend to have a way of working themselves out,” Breslow said, per MassLive’s Sean McAdam. “This is not the first situation where a player’s been outspoken about something that they take a lot of pride in. And that’s OK. Like I said, they tend to work themselves out.”
Breslow also addressed how the Red Sox will break the news to the players involved in the roster competitions when decisions need to be made, lauding manager Alex Cora for his communication abilities.
“I don’t want to say that any single individual shoulders the burden in totality,” Breslow said. “But part of the reason we as an organization feel that Alex is the perfect manager for the Red Sox is his ability to command a clubhouse, his ability to communicate with players across different cultures and ethnicities. He’s such a great communicator.
It’s a fluid situation, and as Breslow intimates, there’s a chance the Red Sox will have the decision made for them. But currently, he and Cora certainly have a lot to digest.