Free agent Alex Bregman joins Red Sox on 3-year, $120M US deal: report

Alex Bregman and the Boston Red Sox have agreed to a three-year contract worth $120 million US, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press on Wednesday night.

The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the agreement was subject to a successful physical.

Bregman can opt out after the 2025 and 2026 seasons to become a free agent again. He is likely to shift from third base to second with the Red Sox, who already have all-star slugger Rafael Devers at the hot corner.

"I texted him right when it went through last night. I just couldn't be more fired up to have him here," new Red Sox pitcher Garrett Crochet said Thursday. "I think you look at the intangibles, and he has them all. I've heard a lot of good stuff about him being an absolute baseball rat, a guy that loves the game and works hard.

"Obviously, his pedigree speaks for itself, won a couple of World Series, the Gold Glove last year shows that he's still at the top of his game."

Red Sox manager Alex Cora, Houston's bench coach in 2017, compared Bregman with former Boston star Dustin Pedroia. Cora was suspended for the 2020 season for his role in the Astros' sign-stealing scandal that year.

"That is a person I really like," Cora said. "With all those guys we went through a lot. We're still going through a lot. We made a mistake in '17 and some of us paid the price. We're back in baseball. We got a second chance. A.J. [Hinch] got a second chance. I did, too.

"Carlos [Beltran] is still getting penalized because he did that. He should be a Hall of Famer already. He should be managing, too."

A two-time all-star and two-time World Series champion during nine years with Houston, the 30-year-old Bregman is coming off one of his poorest offensive seasons. He hit .260 with 26 homers and 75 RBI in the final season of a five-year, $100-million contract, also winning his first Gold Glove.

No. 2 overall pick in 2015

Bregman has 19 post-season home runs, tied for sixth in major league history. He was selected by Houston with the second overall pick in the 2015 amateur draft, made his big league debut a year later and hit .284 with 19 homers, 71 RBI and 17 stolen bases in 2017.

He had four homers and 10 RBI in the post-season as the Astros won their first World Series title, a championship marred when a Major League Baseball investigation revealed the team used banned electronics to steal opponents' signs.

Bregman drove in runs in his first five World Series games, homering off Clayton Kershaw in the opener and Kenley Jansen in Game 4, and hitting a walk-off 10th-inning single against Jansen in Game 5.

Bregman was fifth in American League MVP voting in 2018 and second to Mike Trout in 2019, Bregman's two most productive years at the plate. He batted .286 with 31 homers, 103 RBI and a major league-leading 51 doubles in 2018, then set career highs the following season with a .296 average, 41 homers, 112 RBI and a major league-leading 119 walks.

He walked just 44 times this year with a 23.6 per cent chase rate, his highest since 2017.

Bregman has a .272 average with 191 homers and 663 RBI in nine major league seasons.

Because he turned down a $21.05 million qualifying offer from the Astros, they will receive an extra pick after the fourth round of the amateur draft in July. Houston forfeited its second- and fifth-highest selections for signing Christian Walker. Boston will lose its second-highest pick for signing Bregman and forfeit $500,000 of international signing bonus pool allocation.

After going 81-81 and missing the playoffs for the third straight season, the Red Sox also have added Crochet along with fellow pitchers Walker Buehler, Patrick Sandoval, Aroldis Chapman and Justin Wilson.

"I've been relatively active in terms of talking to Bres," Buehler said, referring to chief baseball officer Craig Breslow. "I love to play GM in my head, not that I have any real sway in it, but any time you join a new franchise, or where you have been, you want to feel like you're a part of it and have some voice in it."

Kershaw finalizes 1-year deal with Dodgers

Clayton Kershaw and the Los Angeles Dodgers finalized a one-year, $7.5- million US contract on Thursday, bringing back the three-time Cy Young Award winner for his 18th season.

The 36-year-old left-hander expects to go on the 60-day injured list following offseason foot and knee surgery, but hopes to be close to ready when eligible to be activated, He's been working out at Camelback Ranch, playing long toss and running after spending much of the off-season on crutches or in a walking boot.

"I finally started to turn the corner a few weeks ago," Kershaw said. "Being able to throw, all those things, it hasn't felt this way in a while. So that's good."

Kershaw's 18th season with the Dodgers would tie him with Zack Wheat and Bill Russell for the most in franchise history. The 10-time all-star is coming off an injury-interrupted 2024 season in which went 2-2 record with a 4.50 earned-run average in seven starts, striking out 24 in 30 innings.

He did not pitch in the post-season for Los Angeles, which won the World Series for the second time in five years.

Kershaw is 212-94 with a 2.50 ERA in 429 starts and three relief appearances. To make room on the 40-man roster, the Dodgers placed right-hander River Ryan on the 60-day injured list.