With spring training wrapping up, multiple concerns are still lingering about how the Boston Red Sox are going to capitalize on a strong 2025 season. Worries about any remaining moves for the upcoming season are high, but one matter requires urgent attention.
The Red Sox need to figure out their infield situation, and they need to do it fast.
Last season, they racked up 93 errors. This is in large part because of players constantly being out of position or being put on the spot at a secondary position.
The overarching problems are injuries and a lack of depth.
Fans were understandably excited by the idea of the Sox roster being healthy after first baseman Triston Casas and third baseman Marcelo Mayer both missed huge chunks of last year as they served various stints on the injured list. But Casas (knee) is out until at least May, while Mayer (wrist) has missed all of spring training.
The situation at third base is particularly perplexing, after Boston traded away Rafael Devers last summer and lost Alex Bregman to free agency in the offseason. Devers wanted out after position changes, initially moving from third to designated hitter to make room for Bregman.
Losing Bregman not once but twice was particularly painful. Just one year into a three-year, $120 million contract, he utilized an opt-out clause at the end of last season. He then signed a five-year $175 million deal with the Cubs as a free agent, opening a deep hole at third.
The Cubs even managed to defer a portion of Bregman’s contract ($70 million of the total).
The Red Sox, along with the Cubs, Detroit Tigers, and Toronto Blue Jays, were chasing quality free agents to fill holes, including trying to lure back Bregman, as well as Eugenio Suárez, Brett Baty, and Cody Bellinger. But the Sox didn’t land any of them.
The Red Sox got outgunned, simple as that.
They did pick up a fair amount of infielders over the past month, but other than Willson Contreras and Isiah Kiner-Falefa, the rest will likely begin the season in the minor leagues. The problem does not have an immediate fix.
The team has come under fire from fans on social media and on talk radio, but team officials have said they are focused on long-term stability and smart moves instead of moves perceived to be made in a panic.
“My job,” Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow said, “is to make sure that we’re not doing something in the short term that sacrifices the long term.”
Analysis of the team’s lack of free agent success focused on the Sox making roster changes via trade instead.
“We’ve added significant payroll via trade,” Boston President and CEO Sam Kennedy said early in spring training. “Roughly $40 million [more] than any other team […] so that’s been the approach so far.”
With the team’s season opener looming on Thursday, many fans are braced for disappointment after the Sox surprised most of the baseball world by going 89-73 and securing a wild card playoff spot in 2025.
