Ex-Red Sox Xander Bogaerts Candidly Addresses Position Change

Xander Bogaerts' first season in San Diego was a trying one, as the star-studded Padres underperformed and missed the Major League Baseball playoffs.

Bogaerts will be leaned on as the National League West club tries to bounce back in 2024, but the four-time All-Star will be challenged with attempting to be productive in unfamiliar territory.

The former Boston Red Sox star is set to move to second base, a position he saw no time at across his first 11 big league seasons. San Diego is handing over shortstop duties to Ha-seong Kim, a fourth-year pro coming off a Gold Glove campaign.

Bogaerts spoke publicly about the position change for the first time Friday. While the 31-year-old clearly isn't thrilled to move to the right side of the infield, he's operating with a team-first mindset.

"I mean, I signed here as a shortstop, you know? But, to me, I live and die baseball," Bogaerts told reporters, per a video shared by 97.3 The Fan. "I felt like we had this conversation earlier in the morning. I was like listen, man, if this is the way you guys view the team as better -- I respect Kim, especially defensively. I actually admire him a lot. So, maybe it can hurt, but I'm just doing it in the best interest of the team. In the end, I feel like I'm at peace with moving off. I felt like if I really didn't want to, I could just let them know. It might have been a tough situation, but I feel like I'm really at peace of I'm gonna have to move off.

"I think deep down in my heart, I was actually cool with it. I didn't expect maybe to be cool with it, but what more can I accomplish in this game? The only reason I came here was to win a World Series. So, if this is the way we're gonna get one, so be it. I was just thinking. I won a World Series at third base, I won one at shortstop and it would be very nice to win one at second base. So, I'm looking at the positives."

Red Sox fans will have an opportunity to see Bogaerts at his new position in his old stomping grounds in late June when the Padres visit Fenway Park for a three-game weekend series.