Boston Red Sox, Rafael Devers more than $100M apart in extension talks: Its playing out in a very similar f – MassLive.com

It was already clear that the Red Sox and third baseman Rafael Devers were very far off from each other in extension talks during spring training. Now, some details have emerged on how just much of a difference there was between the sides.

The Red Sox and Devers were more than $100 million apart in talks, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post. That jibes with reporting from ESPNs Jeff Passan, who told WEEIs The Greg Hill Show on Wednesday that the Red Sox are over $200 million and that Rafael Devers wants more than $300 million in recent discussions.

The Red Sox are said to have offered the excellent young slugger Devers nothing like what he was seeking in terms of length or dollars, Heyman wrote. Word is, Devers was looking for an ultra-long deal that would have made him a Red Sox for life, while the club was thinking more like a contract for much less length a kind of half-life deal. The teams exact offer isnt known, but suffice it to say, they were surely more than $100 million apart.

Devers, 25, is set to become a free agent after the 2023 season. He has said that he doesnt want to negotiate during the regular season, meaning the sides will have to wait until next winter to hammer out a potential long-term deal.

This thing is playing out, guys, in a very, very similar fashion to Mookie Betts, Passan told WEEI, referencing how the Red Sox failed to come to terms with Betts on an extension before trading him to the Dodgers in Feb. 2020.

The Red Sox and Devers had discussions toward the end of spring training but those broke off once it was clear the sides werent close to an agreement. Boston also failed to lock up shortstop Xander Bogaerts, who was reportedly offered a below-market, four-year, $90 million extension (thats really a 1-year, $30 million add-on to the three years left on his contract) in an effort from preventing him to opt out this fall.

Appearing on MassLives Fenway Rundown podcast Tuesday, chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said the club still wants to sign both Bogaerts and Devers despite talks breaking down during camp.

I dont love getting into too much detail on these types of things unless we actually do get to a deal. I think its really up to the players, how much they want to say, Bloom said. Basically, both those guys have talked about it to varying degrees. We would love to have both guys here for a long time. We want to do it in a way that makes sense for them and makes sense for us. Obviously, this spring, we didnt find that path but we want to have them here and hopefully we will find it.

Related links:

Boston Red Sox offered Xander Bogaerts 4-year, $90 million extension; a slap in the face, one of his friends says (report)

Trevor Story gets first Boston Red Sox RBI after missing three games with food poisoning, convincing Alex Cora he was good to go

How Chaim Bloom has blocked out the noise since joining Boston Red Sox, despite occasionally searching his name on Twitter

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Boston Red Sox, Rafael Devers more than $100M apart in extension talks: Its playing out in a very similar f - MassLive.com