Xander Bogaerts puts pressure on Red Sox in extension talks

Red Sox star Xander Bogaerts applied some much-needed pressure on the Boston franchise to extend him during the season.

While the aspect of losing Bogaerts isn’t something Red Sox fans want to entertain right now, this should actually be greeted as a welcomed development.

The Sox and Chaim Bloom have remained stagnant for too long on Bogaerts, who has the right to opt out of his contract after this season. While Bogaerts previously set a deadline of Opening Day to reach an agreement, he appears to have backed off from that approach.

“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,” Bogaerts told the Boston Globe’s Pete Abraham.

Could Red Sox extend Xander Bogaerts during the season?

With trade talks already heating up surrounding Bogaerts, the pressure is on the Sox to make a decision here. Thus far, they’ve stayed away from providing what Bogaerts would deem a competitive offer.

There are several reasons why Bloom’s outlook might be a bit different than it was this offseason. First, the Red Sox potential replacement at shortstop for Bogaerts, Trevor Story, has gotten off to a horrid start with his new team. Perhaps he’s not made for Boston, after all?

Second, Bogaerts is slashing .344/.393/.453 this season with a .846 OPS. Those are MVP-like numbers. While it’s early, it’s fair to question whether moving on from Bogaerts — even if they were to receive a high number of assets at the trade deadline — would be the right and cost-efficient move in the long run.