Jun 13, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Ranger Suarez (55) looks on before the game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

Red Sox Boss Makes Far-Fetched Claim About Ranger Suárez, Alex Bregman

Originally posted on Boston Red Sox on SI
By Jackson Roberts | Last updated Jan 21, 2026 12:21 PM ET

The Boston Red Sox officially announced the signing of Ranger Suárez on Wednesday, and some interesting comments were made by all sides.

Suárez was joined at the podium by agent Scott Boras, Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow, and CEO Sam Kennedy. There were a lot of statements about excitement, good things to come, and the like, but one nugget about the past couple of weeks was too far-fetched to ignore.

Breslow was asked about the timeline of agreeing to terms Suárez five days after the Red Sox learned that third baseman Alex Bregman was headed to the Chicago Cubs, and his characterization of the timeline of events was slightly hard to believe.

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Craig Breslow denies 'pivot' in Suárez negotiations

"The most important thing we did," Breslow said, "is understand that there are multiple paths to improving the team. I don't think there's a question anymore that the strength of our team is going to be our pitching, and our ability to prevent runs.

LIVE Ranger Suárez Introductory Press Conference: https://t.co/88kTS8PtcN
— Red Sox (@RedSox) January 21, 2026

"So when one opportunity was closed off, I wouldn't say that there was a strong pivot, in so much as there was an opportunity to reassess the opportunities in front of us and remain anchored to that commitment to improve our team."

What we learned in the days following the Bregman deal were that the Red Sox offered $165 million, $10 million less than the three-time All-Star accepted from the Cubs, but also included heavy deferrals in their offer and refused to give Bregman a no-trade clause, citing club policy.

From there, the Red Sox were able to get Suárez to sign for $35 million less than the offer to Bregman, and though there are no deferrals in this deal, Chris Cotillo of MassLive reported Wednesday that the deal is heavily backloaded, with $25 million owed over the next two years and $110 million owed over the following three.

So the Red Sox can claim all they want that there wasn't a "pivot" here, but anyone who followed the events in the order that they happened is free to put two and two together.

This article first appeared on Boston Red Sox on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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