After an offer of 6 years for $171.5 million was extended to Alex Bregman by the Detroit Tigers, he has elected to sign with the Boston Red Sox for a higher AAV and less years, with a player option after the first season. Scott Harris has been very vocal about his confidence in the team with or without Bregman stating, “We’re going to be just fine without Alex Bregman, and we still have a clubhouse that just got to the postseason and just beat a team with Alex Bregman, so it clearly can be done.” With that being said we will look at the impact on both sides of the field, and who will be asked to step up to continue the path that was led last year.

Official offers to Alex Bregman:

Astros = 6 years / $156 million

Tigers = 6 years / $171.5 million

Cubs = 4 years / $120 million

Red Sox = 3 years / $120 million ✅

— Ben Verlander (@BenVerlander) February 13, 2025

Defense

Detroit ranked 5th overall defensively but without a shadow of a doubt, were weakest at the 3rd base position. Detroit was a woeful negative 13 defensive runs saved at 3rd base, which ranked in the bottom 5th of the Major Leagues. The only other position they ranked in the negatives was at 2nd base, and that will likely not get any better with Gleyber Torres manning that spot. Bregman was a first-time gold glover, and still defends his position at an elite level. His presence most certainly would have brought stability to an infield that consist of aforementioned Torres, Javy Baez coming off an injury riddled season, and Colt Keith who started a brand new position at first this winter. The Tigers have elected to not make any secondary signings to upgrade defensively at third, with the the hopes that high ranked prospect Jace Jung will improve at the position.

Offense

Offensively, Detroit’s biggest objective was acquiring a run producing right-handed hitter. A role Bregman has filled for numerous years. Detroit took a step in the right direction acquiring Gleyber Torres but in doing so, they would directly block Spencer Torkelson’s track to being an Opening Day starter. Essential swapping Torres for Torkelson, puts them in a slightly better position, but still leaves seeking power from the right side of the plate. Detroit will now look for Justyn Henry-Malloy or Spencer Torkelson to provide that punch out of the DH position. A small portion of the fanbase will once again cling on the outside chance that Javier Baez will return to at least league average numbers at the plate. He is almost fully rehabilitated from a hip injury that cut his season short last year in Mid-August. The one glimmer of hope in his historically poor hitting over the last few years, is his numbers with runners in scoring position, where he has flirted with a .300 average and .800. OPS.

Overall, the Tigers have made a conscious effort to add veteran leadership and Postseason experience to the roster. Bregman certainly would have added a cherry on top to a productive offseason, but time will tell whether losing out on him will be a topic of discussion moving forward.