Why Eye-Opening Alex Bregman Update Could Be Bad For Red Sox

The Houston Astros might not be done with Alex Bregman, after all.

On Thursday, the door for Bregman to return to Houston seemingly reopened with a pair of reports indicating the Astros and Bregman could circle back. One report made it clear Houston’s original offer of six years and $156 million remains on the table.

On Friday, another MLB insider, Jon Heyman, added context to the idea Houston might get creative to fit Bregman back into their plans beyond just financial finagling.

“Astros and Cubs are believed showing significant interest in Alex Bregman. … His longtime Astros team, also engaged at the start of winter, want him enough they may move (Isaac) Paredes to (second base) and (Jose) Altuve to (left field) to accommodate,” Heyman reported via X on Friday morning.

Heyman also noted the Tigers and Red Sox remain involved in the sweepstakes.

The defensive realignment tidbit for Houston is potentially a major development, especially considering Altuve has never played outfield. The Astros’ decision to trade Kyle Tucker earlier in the offseason seemed to indicate the direction they were heading in an attempt to shed some payroll. On top of that, getting Paredes back in that blockbuster with the Cubs seemingly gave Houston a replacement for the departing Bregman, and the Astros also signed infielder Christian Walker to a $60 million deal.

There’s also another option: The Astros could theoretically flip Paredes in another deal, presumably to get outfield help. Doing so after trading Tucker — one of the best outfielders in baseball — might look a little weird, but if Houston was never going to pay Tucker hundreds of millions, it makes some sense to maximize his value.

That Houston reportedly is willing to move some things around to facilitate Bregman’s return would say they feel better about their chances of meeting his asking price. None of it is particularly good news for his other suitors.

Of course, all of this must be taken with a grain of salt. One can’t rule out this is some sort of negotiating ploy, presumably from Bregman’s camp, to drive up his price with talk of Houston potentially coming back into the picture.

If that is the case, all it takes is for one team to up their offer — especially something beyond that original Houston offer — and it might be enough to land Bregman. In that sense, teams like the Red Sox, Cubs and Tigers are likely very much in the mix, but it now comes down to who will budge first.