Report: Red Sox "galaxies apart" from Rafael Devers in contract negotiations
BOSTON -- In a story featured on ESPN.com, Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said that he has "a couple of regrets" with the way the team handled contract negotiations with Xander Bogaerts.
With Bogaerts now long gone for big money in San Diego, there's some concern in Boston that Bloom may feel the same regret a year from now with Rafael Devers.
In that same story, ESPN's Joon Lee reported that the Red Sox and Devers remain "galaxies apart" in their contract negotiations.
"The current expectation from Devers and his camp is that the third baseman will be a free agent at the end of 2023, given the current state of contract talks," Lee reported.
Bloom told Lee that the Red Sox will "go beyond reason to try" to sign Devers, but the team also said that signing Bogaerts was a "top priority" despite putting in what could at best be described as a halfhearted effort to keep the shortstop in Boston.
The Red Sox were also "seriously considering" Dansby Swanson before he signed with the Cubs, and they had "interest" in re-signing J.D. Martinez before he signed with the Dodgers. So their reported interest levels haven't always matched their actions.
"We will probably, I think, go beyond reason to try to get this done," Bloom told Lee. "Hopefully we can get this done. There are always going to be limitations, like people can just put something plain out of reach. Some people love to bet on themselves and I hope he hits 63 homers if he does that."
Devers turned 26 after the 2022 season, during which he hit .295 with an .879 OPS, hitting 42 doubles and 27 RBIs. In six big league seasons, he has a .283 average and an .854 OPS, earning All-Star starting spots in each of the past two seasons and a Silver Slugger in 2021.
Devers was paid $11.2 million last year, after he and the team avoided arbitration. Now entering his final season under Red Sox control, Devers is expected to make a tick under $17 million.
After that, Devers will surely be looking for a mega-deal, especially after Carlos Correa landed a 13-year, $350 million contract with the Giants. The Red Sox have not been willing to offer contracts of 10-plus years to Mookie Betts or to Xander Bogaerts, who received 12-year and 11-year deals respectively from their new NL West homes. Though Bloom is indicating that the Red Sox want Devers, the team's unwillingness to offer those mega-deals may well lead to Red Sox fans saying farewell to another homegrown superstar next winter.
