Xander Bogaerts Changes His Tune on In-Season Contract Negotiations

When the Boston Red Sox offered Xander Bogaerts another undervalued contract extension in April, it felt like a blow to his long-term future with the franchise. Reports suggest the three-time All-Star will likely opt out of his current deal in search of better value. And, like some other stars around the league ala Aaron Judge, Opening Day was the "unofficial" deadline Bogaerts placed on any further contract negotiations.

However, that narrative may have changed.

Xander Bogaerts Contract

Red Sox insider Pete Abraham spoke with Bogaerts recently and detailed the shortstop's willingness to now negotiate a long-term extension in the season, with a twist.

“I don’t know how this would work. But if they talk to [agent Scott Boras] behind closed doors and it’s something that’s fair, he can come to me. We’ll see how that goes.”

- Xander Bogaerts

Red Sox News

Bogaerts is clearly open to discussing his extension, but solely through the lens of his agent Scott Boras.

It's an interesting turn of events for Boston, especially considering Bogaerts' red-hot start at the plate. Boston is struggling as a whole, at 13-21 on the year, but not for lack of effort from the starting shortstop. The 10-year Red Sox veteran is slashing .344/.393/.453 while his 44 hits ranks second on the team. This is the sort of performance that garners big attention on the open free-agent market next offseason.

Trevor Story's offseason signing will undoubtedly play a factor in Boegarts' long-term future, and his ability to get paid. But, at least he's willing to talk.

Adam Taylor McKillop is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Adam Taylor also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username atmckillop. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.