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Red Sox sign another ex-Gold Glove free agent, adding depth on minor league deal
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- Red Sox sign another ex-Gold Glove free agent, adding depth on minor league deal
A day after agreeing to terms on a one-year contract with Isiah Kiner-Falefa , the Red Sox have struck another deal with a veteran free agent infielder who has a Gold Glove on his resumé.
Boston has agreed to sign Brendan Rodgers to a minor league contract with an invitation to major league spring training, sources confirmed Wednesday night. The former Rockie, who won a Gold Glove at second base in 2022, will compete for a roster spot in spring training after a lost season in Houston .
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Rodgers, 29, spent last season with the Astros after signing a minor league deal in February, appearing in just 43 games. He hit .191 with two homers, four doubles, 11 RBIs and a .544 OPS (and a meteoric 35.9% strikeout rate) before his season ended in mid-June. At that point, he had an oblique strain, and he later suffered a concussion and fractured his nose during a collision while rehabbing. Back issues popped up later in the year and he was unable to return.
Before his cameo in Houston, Rodgers spent six seasons with Colorado , the club that drafted him third overall — one spot behind Alex Bregman — out of an Orlando-area high school in the 2015 draft. Considered one of the very best position player prospects in all of baseball between 2016 and 2019, Rodgers struggled with injuries throughout his time with the Rockies and appeared in more than 102 games just twice. In total, he has hit .261 with 47 homers, 208 RBIs and a .714 OPS in the majors. His best offensive season came in 2021, when he hit .284 and slugged 15 homers and 21 doubles for the Rox.
Rodgers’ calling card has been defense, as evidenced by his Gold Glove win playing alongside Trevor Story in Colorado’s infield four years ago. While he has played sparingly at shortstop throughout his career, Rodgers has more than 3,700 career innings at second. He was worth 2 defensive runs saved (DRS) in 2025 despite Statcast having had him grade out poorly in terms of range (24th percentile) and arm strength (16th percentile) in 2024.
The Red Sox appear to be stockpiling potential infield solutions with both second base and third base unsettled after Bregman’s departure . Marcelo Mayer has long been seen as likely to take over one of those spots, at least as part of a platoon, and Kiner-Falefa could see significant playing time at either spot. David Hamilton , Nick Sogard and Nate Eaton are utility options on the 40-man roster. Rodgers, who will not be in the 40-man mix when he reports to camp, could factor into the Opening Day group with a strong spring training.
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