Morosi: St. Louis a ‘realistic’ landing spot if Red Sox trade Xander Bogaerts
Audacy
5/11/2022
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The Red Sox find themselves at an impasse in contract talks with Xander Bogaerts, who could be headed elsewhere as a free agent next winter. Boston seemingly prepared for that possibility by signing Trevor Story, who played shortstop with the Rockies before transitioning to second base this spring.
Off to a sluggish 11-19 start, the Red Sox will be faced with a difficult decision this summer, especially if their early struggles continue. Outside of Rafael Devers, Bogaerts may be the most valuable trade chip the Red Sox have to offer, should Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom call off the dogs in favor of replenishing Boston’s depleted farm system.
If the Red Sox opt to blow it up with a deadline fire sale, MLB insider Jon Morosi expects the Cardinals to be in play for Bogaerts, citing the shortstop void created by Paul DeJong’s minor-league demotion.
“The Cardinals could be looking for a shortstop for both the near term and potentially the long term as well,” Morosi reported Wednesday on MLB Network. “Bogaerts in a Cardinals uniform would look pretty good depending on how things play out in the next couple months here. I do think if the Red Sox make Bogaerts available, [it’s] hard to find a better fit in the major leagues than the St. Louis Cardinals.”
A Xander Bogaerts trade to the #STLCards could be realistic this summer if the #RedSox continue to struggle, as I discussed with @LaurenShehadi on @MLBNetwork earlier today. @MLB pic.twitter.com/xGZxKjeHKb
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) May 11, 2022
The Cardinals haven’t gotten much production out of the shortstop position this year and it’s unclear what kind of impact DeJong will have when and if he returns from Triple-A. St. Louis could be hesitant to take on a rental, unless the Cardinals are confident of working out a long-term deal with Bogaerts, Boston’s longest-tenured player and a two-time World Series champion. A three-time All-Star and recipient of four Silver Slugger Awards, the 29-year-old has been one of the Red Sox’s few bright spots this season, leading the American League in both batting average (.354) and total hits (40).
Coming off an ALCS appearance last fall (the Astros claimed their third pennant in five years), the Red Sox have arrived at a fork in the road with veterans Bogaerts, J.D. Martinez, Chris Sale, Nathan Eovaldi, Kiké Hernandez, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Christian Vazquez all eligible for free agency this offseason.
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