Alex Bregman and Red Sox agree to $120 million, 3-year contract, AP source says

FILE - Houston Astros' Alex Bregman bats during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels, Sept. 22, 2024, in Houston. (AP Photo/Kevin M. Cox, File)

Alex Bregman and the Boston Red Sox have agreed to a $120 million, three-year contract, 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 2026 and 2027 seasons to become a free agent again. He might need to shift from third base to second with the Red Sox, who already have All-Star slugger Rafael Devers at the hot corner.

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 RBIs in the final season of a , also winning his .

Bregman has 19 postseason home runs, tied for sixth in major league history. He was selected by Houston with the , made his big league debut a year later and hit .284 with 19 homers, 71 RBIs and 17 stolen bases in 2017.

He had four homers and 10 RBIs in the postseason as the , a championship marred when a Major League Baseball investigation revealed the team .

Bregman had RBIs 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 AL MVP voting in 2018 and , Bregman's two most productive years at the plate. He batted .286 with 31 homers, 103 RBIs and a major league-leading 51 doubles in 2018, then set career highs the following season with a .296 average, 41 homers, 112 RBIs and a major league-leading 119 walks.

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

Bregman has a .272 average with 191 homers and 663 RBIs in nine big 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.

___

AP MLB:

ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø. All rights reserved.