The Red Sox haven’t started the season as hot as they would have liked to. They currently sit at 3-3 and in fourth place in the AL East after two tough series’ against the Yankees and the Tigers.<\/p>\n
Boston was predicted to finish fourth in the AL East when the season started according to BetOnline.ag<\/a>. I wrote about this when they signed middle infielder Trevor Story<\/a>:<\/p>\n Prior to Sunday\u2019s signing of Story, the Red Sox had been quiet since the league and the players association agreed to a new CBA a few weeks ago. In that timeframe, the Yankees, Blue Jays, and Rays all were relatively active \u2013 which makes sense as to why the Sox fell to fourth place.<\/em><\/p>\n I am surprised, however, that there hasn\u2019t been any line movement since Sunday. Signing Story gives Boston arguably the best infield in baseball and adds a huge bat to their lineup.\u00a0They also have the sixth most likely AL MVP<\/a>\u00a0(according to BetOnline.ag<\/a>) in Rafael Devers. Devers was a first time All Star in 2021, hitting 38 homers and knocking in 113 RBI\u2019s. He placed eleventh in AL MVP voting last season and hopes to move up that ladder this season.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n The Sox aren’t so hot in the news either. As of yesterday, the NY Post’s Jon Heyman reported that the Red Sox and shortstop Xander Bogaerts are “very” far apart on a contract extension<\/a>. After reports that they are also far apart with an extension with 3B Rafael Devers, I’m becoming worried about where they are going to go with this infield. Heyman says that the Sox and Devers are, “more than $100 million apart.”<\/p>\n CLNS Media’s Mike Petraglia<\/a> and 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Alex Barth<\/a> touched on these contract negotiations on the latest episode of the Red Sox Beat podcast:<\/p>\n