As a free agent for the second consecutive year, Alex Bregman has found a new home with the Chicago Cubs<\/p>\n
Per ESPN’s Jeff Passan<\/a>, Bregman has agreed to a five-year, $175 million deal with the Cubs.<\/p>\n “Bregman becomes the latest Scott Boras client to hit the jackpot after opting out of a short-term, high-dollar arrangement. Combine this deal with the $40 million Bregman earned in his one season with the Boston Red Sox, and his total comes to six years, $215 million,” noted The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal<\/a>. “Deferrals lowered the present-day value of his Red Sox contract. The Cubs agreement includes $70 million in deferrals, which is expected to lower the present-day value to the $150M to $155M range, according to sources briefed on the details. Regardless, Bregman ended up with a better result than he reportedly turned down with the Detroit Tigers last offseason \u2013 six years, $171.5 million.” <\/p>\n Jon Heyman<\/a> of the New York Post first reported the news. <\/p>\n Bregman wasted no time in showing his support for the city of Chicago, as he posted about the Chicago Bears as they beat the Green Bay Packers in the first round of the NFL playoffs:<\/p>\n Chicago gave Bregman a full no-trade clause as part of the agreement, according to ESPN’s Jesse Rogers<\/a>. MLB Network’s Mark Feinsand<\/a> reported that the deal does not contain any opt-out clauses. <\/p>\n Bregman was captured celebrating the deal afterwards:<\/p>\n The Boston Red Sox could not match the Cubs in the bidding war for Bregman:<\/p>\n For the teams that failed to sign Bregman, several intriguing options are still available in free agency. Kyle Tucker, Bo Bichette, Cody Bellinger and Eugenio Su\u00e1rez remain in the process of searching for a landing spot on the open market.<\/p>\n Bregman, who signed a\u00a0three-year, $120 million<\/a>\u00a0contract with the Red Sox last offseason, hit free agency again after exercising his opt-out. <\/p>\n There had been some rumblings during the season about Bregman and the Red Sox coming together on a long-term contract. He left the door open when\u00a0asked<\/a>\u00a0about it during All-Star week.<\/p>\n “Maybe,” Bregman said. “I think for me, I’m focused on playing good baseball and trying to help this team win games. We’re obviously open to hearing whatever the Red Sox have to say.”<\/p>\n Even though things didn’t happen before Bregman got to test the market again, he was able to secure the long-term contract that eluded him during his first run as a free agent last year. <\/p>\n The addition of Bregman was a huge boon to the Red Sox in 2025. He has a\u00a0.273\/.360\/.462\u00a0slash line with\u00a018 homers in 112 games\u00a0and made the AL All-Star team.<\/p>\n A quad injury kept Bregman out of action for seven weeks midway through the season and did impact his performance. He hit just .250\/.338\/.386 in 63 games after returning to the lineup on July 11. <\/p>\n Bregman getting a full offseason to get back to 100 percent should have him playing closer to the level he did prior to the All-Star break when he looked like one of the best players in MLB. <\/p>\n The Cubs will be banking on Bregman playing up to his full potential as they look to make a push for the playoffs in 2026. <\/p>\n The addition of Bregman raises a lot of questions about the Cubs’ plans going forward. On the surface, he’s a very good player who can help a team looking to take another step after making the postseason in 2025. <\/p>\n A deeper examination of their current roster, though, suggests another move could be on the way. <\/p>\n Matt Shaw seemed to have a lock on third base because of how good his glove work is and how well his bat came along over the course of his rookie season. <\/p>\n The 23-year-old hit .258\/.317\/.522 with 11 homers over his final 63 games. He ranked<\/a> third among all qualified third basemen in defensive runs saved. <\/p>\n