Triston Casas gives scouting report for new teammate Alex Bregman; veteran provides ‘powerful scrappiness’ in the lineup
Triston Casas was candid when he was asked by the Red Sox media who should be the Red Sox starting third baseman this season. Casas came to the defense of his teammate Rafael Devers, putting him over to the media stating he should play third base and new comer Alex Bregman should play second base.
While Casas has shared his opinions on how the Red Sox infield should look, he’s also expressed his excitement for Bregman joining the team and gave his own scouting report for the veteran.
Casas told reporters that Bregman brings “powerful scrappiness” to the lineup.
“I think what he does best is just control the zone and swing at strikes,” Casas said of Bregman. “I think we do that collectively as a team really strongly as well, so he’s just gonna add to that. I think we go in there and we grind out at-bats, and we have a real collective understanding of what we’re trying to do just in terms of getting into the bullpen early and wearing down pitchers.
“I think he provides a powerful scrappiness because he has such a short swing that he has the ability to extend at-bats, but if one’s left over the plate, they end up on the other side of the wall. His swing is going to play great at our home stadium.
“It’s just going to be an extra bat that they’re going to have to figure out, and it’s going to make a lot of our jobs easier just because he’s going to be on base and driving us in.”
In addition to bringing “powerful scrappiness” to the Red Sox, he also brings an impressive resume that includes two All-Star appearances, two World Series championships, and a career 1.240 OPS to Fenway Park.
The Red Sox signed Bregman to help balance out their lineup, adding a much-needed right-handed hitter. They also added him to help improve their infield defense and bring another leader into the clubhouse to help lead this group's young core.
Casas indicated the team has four hitters that could be the club’s cleanup hitter for 2025.
“We have honestly three or four guys that could be (the cleanup hitter),” he said. “Anywhere within that middle of the order, it’s gonna be special. There’s gonna be guys on base for the No. 3 hole, but also for the No. 7 hole and the No. 8 hole. There’s gonna be plenty of opportunities for everybody to drive in runs, for me to score runs, and for us to just score a lot in general.
“We’ve got righty power now that you can split us up with. The lineup can go a hundred different ways, and that’s the beauty of our team right now.”
Wherever Bregman plays and hits remains to be seen; however, if Casas were in charge, he would have it all decided for Devers, Bregman, and the young players one week into camp.
Alex Bregman on one of the reasons he took a short-term deal with the Red Sox: 'I think I just believe in my abilities'
The Red Sox introduced Alex Bregman to the media on Sunday morning after he signed a three-year, $120 million deal with two opt-outs this week.
In offering his opinion, Mr. Casas seems to have forgotten that Mr. Campbell is in camp with plans to win the second base job. Mr. Devers is a defensive liability. No one is entitled to the job of his choice.