As the Red Sox go about the business of improving their roster, there seems to be a lot of effort being made to not upset Rafael Devers.
The Red Sox have internally discussed both Alex Bregman and Nolan Arenado this offseason, but, incredibly, with the idea of playing them somewhere other than third base. Bregman, who won a Gold Glove at third in 2024 while playing for Houston, would be shifted to second. Arenado, winner of 10 (!) Gold Gloves and widely considered one of the best fielding third basemen in modern baseball history, could be stashed at first.
Does any of this make any sense?
Apparently, the Red Sox are reluctant to make the obvious move here, which would be to move Devers from third base, where he’s proven to be a sub-par defender for years. True, Devers cut his error total last year and has put some work into improving his play at third. But that effort has only taken him so far.
The Red Sox signed Devers to a 10-year, $313.5 contract extension almost two years ago, making him the highest-paid player in franchise history. Even as new deals for Shohei Ohtani and Juan Soto eclipse that contract, Devers remains one of the dozen highest-paid players in the game.
It’s understandable that Devers wishes to remain at third. It’s the only position he’s played professionally and no doubt staying there is a point of pride. But at some point, the Red Sox — and not Devers — should be calling the shots here.
It makes no sense for the Red Sox to acquire a superior defender and then allow Devers to stay at the position. And if the Sox are worried that moving Devers to DH — in the event they can find someone to take the contract of Masataka Yoshida off their hands — then that’s silly, too. The Red Sox signed Devers to a huge extension because of his bat, not because they believed he might grow into some modern-day Brooks Robinson.
The whole idea is to make the team better, including the infield defense. If that means dealing with some disappointment on the part of Devers, that can be overcome. And ignoring better options on the roster is an example of baseball malpractice.
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* I get all the talk that, in the age of NIL, college football is the new pro football, and sure, the landscape has changed dramatically. But Bill Belichick’s decision to coach at North Carolina suggests that he believed he had little to no chance of getting hired for one of the handful of NFL openings that are going to exist in a few weeks.
Belichick has a healthy ego and is mindful of his legacy. You mean to tell me that passing Don Shula for most career wins wasn’t a priority for him? It’s obvious that Belichick believes he’s been blackballed and wasn’t going to be considered for those jobs.
* While the Bruins hang around a playoff spot as the season approaches the halfway point, don’t be fooled. The B’s have allowed six or more goals four times already; that doesn’t happen to playoff-caliber teams. And time after time, the Bruins have shown themselves incapable of competing against the league’s best opponents, with lopsided losses to Dallas, Carolina, Winnipeg and others.
The other night against Seattle — like the Bruins, essentially a .500 team — the Bruins far too often allowed Kraken skaters to head to the net without impediment.
* Remember when part of the excuse for not getting much return for Mookie Betts was the notion that he only had a year of control remaining, thus depleting the Red Sox’ trade leverage? But somehow, players like Juan Soto (dealt from San Diego to the Yankees last offseason), Kyle Tucker and Devin Williams — all soon headed to free agency — netted better packages in return.
* You’d have to search pretty long and hard to find a bigger bust than the Patriots’ Ja’Lynn Polk. A second-round pick last spring, Polk has all of four receptions over the last eight weeks and a total of 12 for the season, good for a whopping 87 yards. And still, that’s more production than the Pats have gotten out of their fourth-round selection, Javon Baker, who, with four games remaining, is still looking for his first catch.
* The video of Bob Cousy receiving his honorary Celtics championship ring from Title No. 18 will warm you on even the coldest of winter nights.
* I’m guarding against getting my hopes up too much, but the advance word on Timothee Chalamet’s portrayal of Bob Dylan in the upcoming biopic A Complete Unknown is making that increasingly difficult.
* The Red Sox’ reported interest in Luis Castillo makes some sense. Castillo is a veteran righthander with the ability to consistently pitch deep into games. But the Sox should be wary of either giving up too much, or taking on all of his remaining salary ($72.4 million remaining over the next three seasons). Pitching in spacious T-Mobile Park in Seattle last year, he had an ERA of 3.15; on the road, that number ballooned to 4.25.
* If the NBA is such a hot property, as we’re constantly told, why, then, are the TV ratings on ESPN down 28 percent through the end of last month? There are plenty of theories — including the length of the regular season, “load management,” and more — but in the end, all that matters are the numbers. And no, it’s not just a one-year dip: ESPN’s NBA numbers are down seven percent matched against the ratings from 2016-17.
* The fact that the Celtics are showing themselves capable of winning games in which their best players are unavailable should have the rest of the NBA plenty worried.
