The Boston Red Sox added their first intriguing piece of the offseason on Friday in Jake Bauers and his role with the organization is already becoming clear.
Bauers agreed to terms on a four-year, $58 million deal that will tie him to Boston through the 2030 season. The 31-year-old is a seven-year big league veteran who has gone from being a role player, to a consistent starter as a member of the Milwaukee Brewers in 2026. In general, he bounced around throughout his career before landing with the Brewers for the 2024 campaign. He has spent time with the Tampa Bay Rays, Cleveland Guardians, Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees, Brewers and now the Red Sox. He has had various roles, but in Boston, the expectation is that he’s mostly going to be a designated hitter, while also getting some time at first base, per MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo.
“Red Sox plan for Jake Bauers is to mostly be the designated hitter while cycling in at first base to get Willson Contreras off his feet more, sources say. The Red Sox want Contreras healthy for 162 and that helps to that end,” Cotillo wrote.
Red Sox Nail Jake Bauers’ Role
The news of Bauers’ deal is fresh. But this is as good an initial plan as Boston could have. Over the last few years, the Red Sox haven’t had much depth at first base. In 2026, Contreras was incredible. But when he was hurt, there wasn’t much behind him. Triston Casas was penciled in as the Red Sox’s starter in 2024 and 2025 but he suffered significant injuries and Boston had to scramble. Now, there is legit first base depth with Contreras and Bauers. That takes some of the pressure off Contreras and will allow him to stay off his feet more as a DH.
But, as Cotillo noted, the DH spot will mainly be Bauers’, which is for the best. When the Red Sox’s outfielders were all healthy in 2026, either Jarren Duran or Roman Anthony got the most time at DH of the starting outfielders. Anthony missed most of the season, though. With Bauers as the DH, Anthony will be out in left field, barring injuries. If the idea of the DH spot were between Bauers and Duran, then Bauers is a significant upgrade over what the speedster did in 2026. Duran batted .207. He had a 20-20 season, but you have to get on base. Duran’s on-base percentage was .266. Bauers’ was .389. That alone gives the Red Sox a massive upgrade over what they had.
Boston is better today than it was yesterday. The beauty is the fact that there are still months left to add more. Boston just bolstered the DH spot without having to give up a nine-figure deal, like it likely would’ve cost to sign someone like Randy Arozarena or Seiya Suzuki. Now, the Red Sox should take some of the cash and throw it at Adley Rutschman to make sure he sticks around beyond the 2027 season.
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