Red Sox Executive Addresses Potential Extension For Brayan Bello

One of the brightest spots for the Red Sox thus far this season has been the emergence of Brayan Bello.

Bello, signed by Boston as an international free agent in 2017, has flashed ace potential amid his first full Major League Baseball season. Not only is the 24-year-old putting up the numbers of a frontline starter, but he’s showcasing an approach to the game that surely must please the organization a great deal.

These factors and more suggest Bello soon could be an extension candidate for the Red Sox, even though he’s not slated to hit his first arbitration year until 2027. In a recent conversation with The Athletic’s Jen McCaffrey, assistant general manager Eddie Romero hinted that the organization could take such a route with the Dominican right-hander.

“It’s all case-by-case, there’s no guidebook for it, but I think Brayan is a special case and we’ll make efforts to talk to him and his group,” Romero told McCaffrey. “He’s basically done what he needs to do and what we would want of a young starting pitcher in this organization and he’s gone about it the right way, he’s a great teammate and he’s improved the quality of his repertoire, he’s a very hard worker, and he’s earned the respect of everybody here so he’s the kind we want to stick around obviously.”

Bello acknowledged he would “love” to stick around with the Red Sox for the long haul. However, he’d prefer to not hear about negotiations during the season, as he’s primarily focused on finishing the campaign strong.

The budding star is slated to make his next start Wednesday when the Red Sox wrap up their three-game series in Oakland.