The Boston Red Sox caught a lot of heat for not matching the Chicago Cubs' price for Alex Bregman this offseason. Sure, the way things played out looked bad. Bregman's arrival led to the Red Sox trading away Rafael Devers, who was beloved in Boston for a long time. He established himself as a leader, and was seemingly the club's No. 1 free agency target all winter -- until the Cubs offered about $10 million more and the Red Sox weren't willing to give him a no-trade clause. Just under a month after the Bregman-Cubs deal, the Red Sox traded for former Milwaukee Brewers third baseman Caleb Durbin. And while it's been an up-and-down first season in Boston for Durbin, the exchange seems to be wholly justified already. Bregman at $30.1 million vs. Durbin at $796,000Jul 20, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox third baseman Caleb Durbin (5) reacts to his home run against the Baltimore Orioles during the eighth inning at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters ConnectThe contract figures sort of tell the whole story. Durbin, who didn't get a full year of service time in Milwaukee last year, will be pre-arbitration for two more years. The Red Sox got him under full team control through the end of the 2031 season -- even if it cost them Kyle Harrison, who could have been an All-Star for the Brewers if the roster selection broke his way. Bregman, meanwhile, costs the Cubs over $30 million against the luxury tax even with deferrals. He's playing out his age-32 through 36 seasons in Chicago, and really hasn't had an elite offensive season since 2019 -- 2022 was right on the cusp of elite. This year, Bregman and Durbin are somehow as close to the same player in terms of production than any pairing in the league. Both sport exactly a .699 OPS and 96 OPS+ entering play on Tuesday. Durbin has 2.3 bWAR to Bregman's 2.4, but Bregman has 111 more plate appearances. And as if it was a sign from the gods that the Red Sox made the right move, Durbin homered in a tie game in the eighth inning on Monday night to extend the team's winning streak to 14 -- right as Bregman was striking out after working a 3-0 count against Kenley Jansen when a free pass would have given the Cubs a walk-off win. Craig Breslow gets plenty of deserved criticism from Red Sox fans for some of his mistakes as chief baseball officer. But even if it's only year one, we can pretty comfortably say ditching Bregman wasn't one of those mistakes.Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow