MLB Insider Has Solution For Red Sox Following Rafael Devers Trade

The Boston Red Sox recovered roughly $250 million in salary relief when they shipped Rafael Devers off to the San Francisco Giants on Sunday.

How the Red Sox front office decides to use that money has come into greater focus in the five days since the blockbuster deal became official. With the team currently in the American League Wild Card picture, acquiring a marquee player capable of replacing Devers’ bat before the trade deadline has become a popular idea among fans and baseball insiders.

That being said, not everyone agrees with that assessment. During an appearance on the MLB Network on Friday, New York Post baseball writer Jon Heyman had an entirely different plan for how the Red Sox front office should use that money.

“I do think they are a playoff team this year,”said Heyman.”But in terms of the fans, they’ve got work to do, and it certainly should start with Alex Bregman and Roman Anthony.”

With Bregman’s three-year $120 million contract containing opt outs over the next few seasons, Heyman would like to see the Red Sox make a long term commitment to the two-time All-Star.

“In my opinion, they should try to lock up Bregman,” added Heyman.”I mean, look, he’s got an opt out. He’s gonna opt out. There’s no way around that. At this point, two years and eight million to go, he’d been offered $171.5 million by the Detroit Tigers. So he knows that certainly the Cubs were interested. But this is a guy that really fits Boston. He loves it in that big market. He’s a winner.”

As Bregman is currently on the 60-day injured list with a strained right quad, extension talks are probably not high on either side’s priority list just yet. The same is true of Anthony, who’s only played in nine big league games since being promoted to the 26-man roster on June 9.