Alex Bregman was expected to be a key addition for the Chicago Cubs when he signed a five-year, $175 million contract during the MLB offseason. But nearly two months into the 2026 season, fans and people around the Cubs organization fear he’s one of the main reasons for the team’s recent collapse.

After beginning the year with playoff expectations and one of the best records in baseball, Chicago has fallen into a slump. It happens to most MLB teams, but the Cubs have gone 5-16 over the last 21 games and have dropped to fourth place in the National League Central. While injuries have been a factor, the pitching has also struggled, but much of the attention is on Bregman’s struggles at the plate.

The numbers tell the story: Through 65 games, Bregman has just five home runs and 19 RBIs, making this one of the worst seasons of his major league career. Perhaps most concerning is his inability to deliver in key situations—he leads the majors in runners left on base. Frustration has become evident at Wrigley Field, and many Chicago fans have begun booing the former All-Star. Bregman has not shied away from the criticism.
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He’s admitted he’s been terrible and needs to play better, but despite his offensive struggles, Bregman continues to provide value defensively. He ranks among the National League’s better defensive third basemen and is respected in the clubhouse for his leadership and experience.

Still, the Cubs did not invest $175 million solely in defense. They signed Bregman to replace much of the offensive production they lost, hoping to bring Chicago back into postseason contention. Cubs fans expected more and are looking for Bregman to return to the form he showed as the Houston Astros’ star third baseman.

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Boston Red Sox third baseman Alex Bregman has decided to opt out of his three-year, $120 million contract with Boston and enter as a free agent this offseason. The move was widely anticipated, though Boston remains a strong candidate to bring him back.

Bregman signed the three-year deal with the Red Sox last February after remaining unsigned until spring training. The contract included opt-outs after both the 2025 and 2026 seasons, giving him flexibility if he wanted to test his value again. At 31, Bregman is once more a free agent, hoping to find a long-term fit after a productive first year in Boston.

His 2025 campaign started hot, with Bregman hitting .299 and driving in 35 runs before a quad injury sidelined him for nearly seven weeks. He finished the season batting .273 with 18 home runs and 62 RBIs. Even as the team fell to the Yankees in the Wild Card Series, Bregman’s impact was clear both on and off the field.

Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow called Bregman, “a tremendous presence” and said, “the team won’t rule out further talks with his agent, Scott Boras.” Breslow went on to highlight how Bregman’s influence extended beyond his stats, praising the veteran’s leadership and grounding presence in the clubhouse.

With Bregman now part of a strong free agent class, he’s expected to draw interest from several contenders, that include the Tigers, Blue Jays and Mariners. Whether he returns to Boston or moves on, his decision marks another key moment in what promises to be an active MLB offseason.

With Rafael Devers publicly stating that he does not intend to move from third base in 2025, newly signed Boston Red Sox star Alex Bregman is taking a more malleable approach. The longtime Astros third baseman is willing to move to another position, likely second, in order to help his new team.

“I think everybody here believes in their abilities,” Bregman told MLB.com this week. “I think all of us believe that if we all put together a good effort this season, we have a really good chance of being a winning baseball team. For me, I can only talk for myself, I’ll play wherever it helps the team win.”

Signing Bregman to a short-term deal is a low-risk value acquisition for Boston, but the team did not pick him up to address a need. Devers is one of the top sluggers in baseball and has played third for the Red Sox since 2017. 

On paper, Bregman is generally considered a better defender than Devers, which technically makes him more qualified to keep his position. On the other hand, it also makes him more likely to successfully transition to second base. In any case, Devers isn’t budging for now and Bregman is willing to play nice on his new team, and that’s the determining factor. The Red Sox’s infield is crowded, and perhaps tense, but it could also be one of the best in the American League.

Despite leaving the Astros, Bregman could still have a few years of elite production left. At age 30, he is coming off a season in which he hit .260 with 26 home runs, playing an integral role in the Astros’ turbulent run to the postseason. Houston’s dynasty has been on fumes as of late, but even after the season ended in the Wild Card, many players seemed intent on keeping Bregman for the next step. The two sides could not agree on terms, however, forcing the veteran to consider other offers.

The Red Sox have been largely disappointing since winning the World Series in 2018, but acquiring Bregman is a strong sign that the team is looking to compete in 2025. Devers may not be happy with the perceived competition, but Bregman can help this team thrive in a crowded A.L. East division.

The Boston Red Sox signed third baseman Alex Bregman in a three-year, $120 million deal Wednesday. With slugger Rafael Devers already at third for Boston, Bregman will likely move to second base.

Debuting in 2016, Bregman has won two World Series with the Houston Astros, where he has spent his entire career. When the off-season kicked off in November, many speculated that Houston would work hard to re-sign Bregman. Longtime teammate Jose Altuve was publicly adamant about the idea, propagating the theory. 

“We’re not going to be the same organization without him,” Altuve said at the end of the 2024 season. “In my mind, there’s not a chance this is the last one.”

As the months wore on, however, it became more and more apparent that Bregman and his former team landed in different places in negotiations. The two-time All-Star became the subject of increased speculation, with other teams reportedly entering the fray. Boston won out this week.

Based on the way that the Red Sox’s roster is developing, signing Bregman was clearly a matter of capitalizing on value. It wasn’t to fill a roster need, as Devers seems locked in at third while prospect Kristian Campbell is currently ranked the best second baseman in the minor leagues. Bregman’s contract includes deferred payments, which will soften the impact of what would otherwise be a $40 million annual salary.

Last year, the Red Sox missed the playoffs with an 81-81 record. Since winning the World Series in 2018, they have only earned one postseason berth. Sending away players like Mookie Betts and Chris Sale proved to be brutal errors and the team has wallowed in the AL East trying to regather momentum. At age 30, Bregman remains a strong hitter and capable infielder, and could provide a short-term boost to Boston’s lineup over the next few seasons.

The Detroit Tigers swept the Houston Astros in two straight games to eliminate them in a Wild Card upset. Among the many disappointments that accompanied the defeat for Houston, Alex Bregman’s impending free agency lingers like a dark cloud.

After the game, the nine-year veteran and career-long Astro shared his farewells with teammates, having potentially played his final game in the blue and orange. Jose Altuve doesn’t believe it.

During an embrace between the two players on the field, the second baseman told Bregman, “You’re coming back.” He remained adamant while speaking with reporters, insisting that the Astros should re-sign his longtime teammate.

“We’re not going to be the same organization without him,” Altuve said. “In my mind, there’s not a chance this is the last one.”

Bregman’s contributions to the Astros during his career are astounding. He has been a cornerstone of a dynastic team that has made four World Series appearances and won two championships since his rookie year. Never batting worse than .259 in a full season, he has also stepped up in many postseason series. He and Altuve, who earned a $125 million extension from Houston earlier this year, are the only non-pitchers remaining from the 2017 World Series team.

At age 30, Bregman has proven that he still has plenty to offer teams in free agency. In 2024, he overcame a slow start and finished the season with a .260 batting average and 26 home runs, earning a 4.1 WAR. Though he hasn’t made an All-Star appearance since 2019, his value to Houston has been undeniable. He likely has one more big contract in him before retirement, but Altuve is reflecting the sentiments of many Astros fans who will demand that the team locks him down for life this off-season.

“He gave a lot to this organization,” Altuve said. “Now it’s time for us, as a team, as an organization, to pay him back and make him stay here.”

Houston Astros star Zack Greinke silenced the Oakland Athletics’ crowd on Thursday night. Greinke pitched six shutout innings and struck out four batters in an Astros 8-1 win. Michael Brantley and Alex Bregman added to Houston’s scoring with back-to-back home runs in the eighth inning.

However, A’s fans jeered the Astros with boos during the pregame introductions. In addition, fans held up signs with trashcans on them and chanted “cheaters” at the Astros. A’s fans gave a loud cheer when Houston’s Carlos Correa was hit by A’s starter Chris Bassitt‘s fastball in the fourth inning.

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The jeering from the crowd was not enough to affect an Astros squad that steamrolled the A’s. Aided by a pair of home runs by Bregman and Brantley, the Astros absolutely dominated Oakland. The other big offensive contributions came from designated hitter Yordan Alvarez, who hit an RBI double and a sacrifice fly, finishing the game with 3 RBI.

“Got to hear some boos, finally. That wasn’t fun to listen to, I didn’t think, but we played good so it didn’t matter,” Greinke said. “Hopefully we’ll keep playing good and it won’t be as big of an issue.”

“That’s fine, this is a veteran team,” Brantley said. “We’ve been in the World Series, we’ve been in the playoffs.” The hitter continued, “They can boo, they can yell, they can do whatever they want. But at the end of the day we have each other’s backs, and that’s all that matters,” Brantley said.

The jeers are not limited to the Athletics. Every other team across Major League Baseball will want to instigate the Astros. This stems from the Houston’s infamous cheating scandal that occurred in the 2017 and 2018 seasons. A league investigation found that Houston used a camera to illegally spy and steal the opposing team’s pitching signals. The team would then relay it to hitters by banging on trash cans. The cheating helped the Astros win the World Series in 2017.

After the investigation, the league suspended Astros manager A.J. Hinch and general manager Jeff Luhnow for one year, and they were subsequently fired by Houston. The organization was fined $5 million and forfeited first- and second-round draft picks in 2020 and 2021.

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The Houston Astros are now facing even more criticism for their sign-stealing scandal after their latest attempt at damage control did everything but that. Owner Jim Crane spent 27 minutes of a news conference flip-flopping points and arguments about the claim that his team cheated during their 2017 championship season.

One of the more concerning moments in the apology was when Crane contradicted himself within a span of 60 seconds.

“Our opinion is that this didn’t impact the game.” he said with a straight face.

When pressed further on what he meant, Crane said, “I didn’t say it didn’t impact the game.”

In attempts to clean up the intended apology, Crane sought further explanations and solutions.

“I’ll make sure I have someone that’s accountable moving forward and will be checking constantly,” he said. “We’ll have controls in place to make sure it doesn’t happen again. And again, if I’d have known about it, I’d have done something about it. But I’m not in the locker room. I’m not down in the dugout. So it was very difficult, and I didn’t know about it until November, just like you guys.”

Star players Alex Bregman and Jose Altuve spoke for a combined 90 seconds.

Bregman did not take questions, but expressed his regret and apologized for the choices he and his teammates made.

Altuve spoke for about 38 seconds and although an apology was there, some have expressed the lack of sincerity as empty.

The entire team met Wednesday night to discuss their message to the media and many players have spoken to express their remorse.

“That was the first time we’ve all been together since the season ended,” outfielder George Springer said. “It was a productive meeting. The amount of remorse and regret was very obvious to us… There is no real way to express how much regret we have, how much remorse we have.”

Crane added that he doesn’t think he should be held accountable and said, “I don’t feel it’s necessary to reach out specifically to the Dodgers.”

Los Angeles is the MVP city this year apparently, as the Dodgers’ Cody Bellinger and Angels’ Mike Trout have won the MVP awards for their respective leagues, MLB announced on Thursday.

Bellinger received 19 of the 30 first place votes, with 10 second place votes. Trout received 17 of 30 first place votes.

Only in his third year in the league, Bellinger averaged .305 with 121 runs, 47 home runs and 115 RBI. He has now won the NL Rookie of the Year, become a two time All-Star, Silver Slugger award winner, Golden Glove, and MVP in only three seasons. He is one of four players to win the Rookie of the Year award, Golden Glove and MVP before the age of 25 (Hall of Famer Johnny Bench, Fred Lynn, and Dustin Pedroia are the others).

Last year’s winner, Milwaukee’s Christian Yelich finished with 10 first place votes. He finished batting .329 with 44 home runs, 97 RBI and 100 runs in a season shortened at the end by injury. Newly minted World Series winner Anthony Rendon got the last place vote with a .319, 34 HR, 117 R, and 126 RBI stat line.

Trout, who also finished his season early due to injury, batted .291 with 34 home runs, 110 runs, 104 RBI’s in only 470 at bats and led the league with a .438 on base percentage (he was on base 44% of the times he went to bat!). All five of the top MVP vote-getters were in the top five in OBPs.

This is Trout’s third MVP award, winning also in 2012 and 2016. At 28, he is an eight time All-Star with a list of awards too long to list. Yet unlike the other teams that the MVP candidates represent, the Angels are the only ones with a losing record. In the history of the MLB, the MVP has been typically given to a player of a playoff-bound team.

The second most first place votes in the AL behind Trout was Houston Astros’ Alex Bregman, whom many had predicted was neck and neck with Trout for the award. Bregman batted .296, 122 R, 41 HR, 112 RBI for the World Series-bound Astros. He got a World Series ring his second year in the league. He has improved his offensive numbers in almost every catergory since he entered the league in 2016.

Nearly every baseball star assembled Monday night at Progressive Field for the 2019 MLB All–Star game, where the American league again emerged victorious with a 1–run win. With another victory, the American League extended their winning streak to seven games, going 11 for 14 since 2003.

Astros outfielder Michael Brantley drove in the first run, scoring his teammate Alex Bregman with a double ricocheting off the left field wall. During the following innings both teams flashed their pitching talents such as Jacob DeGrom, Luis Castillo,  Jose Berrios, and Lucas Giolito as neither team added any runs until the fifth inning until Jorge Polanco brought home Gary Sanchez, adding another run to the American League effort.

The National league plated their first run the following inning, as Rockies outfielder Charlie Blackmon homered off Liam Henricks, bringing the game to a 2–1 score still favoring the American League. Xander Bogaerts and Joey Gallo responded during the seventh, as both brought in runs at the pate and stretched the lead out to three. Although home run derby champion Pete Alonso scored two runs with an eighth inning RBI single, both offenses quickly sputtered out after, and the American League won by a 4–3 score.

Yankees closer Aroldis Champman shut the door once trotting out to the hill in the ninth, striking out the side and granting the save. His teammate, Masahiro Tanaka, earned the win, as the pair became the first Yankee teammates to do so in an All–Star game. In a night seemingly made for Yankees pitchers, veteran hurler C.C. Sabathia also got his moment as he threw out the game’s first pitch while the city where he began his Hall of Fame career, Cleveland, cheered behind him. The crowd honored Sabathia as he trotted out to the mound during the game’s closing frames as well.

The Midsummer Classic now posters a 45–43–1 record, favoring the American league as they continue to ride this hot streak over the last decade and a half.

The American League defeated the National League 8-6 in Tuesday night’s MLB All-Star Game at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C.

MLB All-Star Game 2018 Highlights

The contest featured ten home runs, — five from each team — the most of any All-Star Game.

The AL has now won the All-Star matchup in 13 of the past 16 years. Houston Astros third baseman/shortstop Alex Bregman, 24, won the Game MVP award, and also smacked the game-winning homer in the 10th inning.

Here are some of the highlights from the game:

Second-year New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge opened the scoring in the second with a left-field homer that put the AL up 1-0.

Then in the third, Mike Trout hit a deep ball off Jacob deGrom to double the AL’s lead:

The NL made it 2-1 in the bottom of the frame when Wilson Contreras tapped a pitch from Blake Snell over the left-field wall.

In the fourth, buddies Manny Machado of the Baltimore Orioles and Matt Kemp of the Los Angeles Dodgers snapped a selfie together, amid speculation of Machado landing with the Dodgers via trade.

After Bregman made it 6-5 in the tenth, George Springer and Jean Segura added one run each.

In total, the game lasted nearly three hours and 40 minutes.

Derek Jeter drew wild cheers from fans at Yankee Stadium on Sunday night, as the team retired the former shortstop’s iconic No. 2 jersey during a pre-game ceremony, and even Houston Astros infielder Alex Bregman honored the New York legend with a big hit.

Astros’ Alex Bregman Hits Grand Slam, Yankees retire Derek Jeter’s No. 2 jersey

Bregman’s first-inning grand slam helped propel the Astros to a 10-7 victory over the Yankees, the second-game of a double-header. The 23-year-old third baseman dedicated the hit to Jeter, one of his heroes, whose jersey the Yankees retired in-between Sunday’s two games, the first of which the Yankees won 11-6.

“I guess it was the No. 2 magic tonight,” Bregman, who also wears the No. 2, said following the game of his first homer of the season.

The Astros infielder also had another person he admired attend Sunday’s game, very fitting for the holiday:

Bregman’s 430-foot (according to Statcast) blast to the left-center field bleachers off Masahiro Tanaka helped Houston jump out to an early 6-0 lead.

The young third baseman, who grew up in New Mexico, discussed how much he looked up to Jeter as a child.

“You watch all those moments Jeter had with the Yankees, you can tell by the fans’ reaction how much he meant to them, how much he meant to the city, how much he meant to the game of baseball,” said Bregman. “You get chills watching some of those moments: ‘The Flip,’ the home runs, the jump throws in the hole. It was a very special ceremony.”

Bregman said he first met Jeter at an Alabama-LSU football tailgate party and then saw him play against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. He was still in awe of his grand slam until late on Sunday.

Jeter’s jersey retirement ceremony included an unveiling of a plaque with the No. 2 on it. The former shortstop — who will be 43 in June — performed the honors in front of his family and delivered an emotional speech in which he thanked the Yankees organization and fans for their unending support. Jeter rode into the infield on a golf cart while Frank Sinatra’s “My Way” blared.

Before that, however, Jeter started his spiel by wishing a Happy Mothers’ Day to all the mothers in the world, and gave a special shout-out to the important women in his life including his wife Hannah Davis, with whom he is expecting his first child.

“First of all, I just want to say Happy Mothers’ Day to all the mothers out there,” Jeter began by telling the Bronx crowd, which cheered loudly. “Especially my mom, my grandmother, my sister and my wife who is very soon going to be a mother.”

It was announced in February that Jeter and Davis are expecting a girl.

“Thank you to George Steinbrenner and the Steinbrenner family for giving me the opportunity to play my entire career for the only team I ever wanted to play for,” Jeter, the 2000 World Series MVP, continued before thanking his coaches, managers and fans — both those attending the ceremony and watching at home.

The legend also said he was recently asked who he would exchange places with if he had the opportunity, and revealed his answer to Yankees fans, whom he called “the greatest” and who responded with roaring cheers and applause.

“I say this very humbly, but there isn’t a person or player I would trade places with who’s playing now or ever,” Jeter said. “And the reason I say that is because I got a chance to play for a first-class organization and the greatest fans in the history of sports.

“You know, you play here in New York for twenty years and you learn that time flies, memories fade but family is forever. And I’ll be eternally grateful to be a part of the Yankee family, so I can’t thank you guys enough. Thank you very much,” the five-time World Series champion finished off by saying.

Yankees co-owner Jennifer Steinbrenner Swindal presented the five-time Gold Glove Award winner and 1996 AL Rookie of the Year with a 14-karat white gold ring with “2” in diamonds, surrounded by diamonds.

Jeter’s former Yankees teammates Mariano Rivera, Paul O’Neill, Tino Martinez, David Cone and Hideki Matsui all attended Sunday’s ceremony, though Alex Rodriguez was absent. Yankees spokesman Ron Berkowitz stated Rodriguez was in Miami, spending time with family.

Astros designated hitter Carlos Beltran, another former teammate of Jeter’s, also gave the retired star a new Monument Park navy blazer as part of the ceremony.

Jeter, who played his entire Major League Baseball career (1995-2014) for the Yankees originally wore a No. 74 jersey at his major league camp in 1994. The following spring, clubhouse manager Nick Priore switched it to No. 17 before finally settling on No. 2, which Jeter wore from his big league debut on May 29, 1995 to his final game on Sept. 28, 2014. Then-Yankees manager Buck Showalter was also believed to have influenced the jersey number change.

“There’s rumors out there that Buck suggested I be No. 2,” Jeter said. “He’s never told me that personally, but I’ve heard that he’s said it and I appreciate it if he thought that much of me to give me the number 2.”

Jeter was recently the center of speculation himself: he and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush were rumored to be among a group of high-profile bidders to buy the Miami Marlins. However, Jeter dismissed questions about those reports on Sunday, saying there is no basis for the claims.

“There’s nothing to report on that. Absolutely nothing,” the 14-time All-Star said. “I think sometimes people get ahead of themselves, and there was a story that got way ahead of themselves a few weeks back.”

Other former Yankees players who have had their jerseys retired recently include Rivera (42), Jorge Posada (20), Andy Pettitte (46) and Bernie Williams (51). Jeter’s plaque will be kept at Yankee Stadium alongside those of other team legends like Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle and Yogi Berra. The Yankees have retired the jerseys of 22 players in total, the most by far among MLB teams.

Jeter, who served as the Yankees’ captain during his last 12 seasons, retired with 3,465 career hits, the sixth-most in MLB history.

NEW YORK, NY – MAY 14: Former New York Yankees great, Derek Jeter stands in front of his plaque during a pregame ceremony honoring Jeter and retiring his number 2 at Yankee Stadium on May 14, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)