Alex Bregman
Alexander David Bregman is an American professional baseball third baseman for the Chicago Cubs of Major League Baseball. He has previously played in MLB for the Houston Astros and Boston Red Sox.
As a high school sophomore at Albuquerque Academy in 2010, Bregman became the first high school player to win the USA Baseball Player of the Year Award. As a junior the following year he batted.678 while setting a New Mexico season record with 19 home runs. In three years of college baseball for Louisiana State University, Bregman was voted the 2013 National Freshman of the Year by Baseball America, won the 2013 Brooks Wallace Award as the country's best college shortstop, and was a two-time All-American. Toward the end of his junior year of college, he was selected by the Houston Astros with the second pick in the first round of the 2015 MLB draft.
Bregman made his MLB debut in 2016. He started 2017 as the youngest member of Team USA, which won the gold medal in the 2017 World Baseball Classic, and he ended the season winning the 2017 World Series with the Astros. He was named MVP of the 2018 MLB All-Star Game and led the American League in doubles in 2018. In 2019 he was again an All Star, led the AL in walks and WAR, and received the 2019 American League Silver Slugger Award at third base. In 2022, he won his second World Series. Bregman won his first Gold Glove in 2024. As of 2024, he is the all-time leader in multiple postseason records for a third baseman, including home runs, runs batted in, runs scored, putouts, and assists.
Early life
Bregman was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and raised in the Northeast Heights section. He is Jewish and was a member of Albuquerque's Congregation Albert growing up. At age 13, in his Bar Mitzvah speech he said: "I want to be a professional athlete who plays for the love of the game, never quits trying to give my best, and is a good role model for all of the kids who look up to baseball players."His father, Samuel Bregman, and his mother, Jackie Bregman, met in law school and are both lawyers. Sam Bregman also served as the chair of the Democratic Party of New Mexico. He has two younger siblings, Jessica and Anthony ; his brother A.J. is also a baseball player, and was selected by the Astros in the 35th round of the 2018 MLB draft. His father played baseball as a freshman for the University of New Mexico Lobos in 1982, a team for which his uncle Ben Bregman also played; they both originally moved to Albuquerque to play baseball for the college on baseball scholarships. His father was also a part owner, starting in 2006, of the NBA Development League’s New Mexico Thunderbirds. His father is currently the District Attorney of Bernalillo County, New Mexico. His father is Jewish, while his mother converted to Judaism from Catholicism.
His paternal grandfather, Stan Bregman, was the son of Russian-Jewish immigrants. His grandfather was general counsel for the Washington Senators from the late 1960s until the team moved to Texas in 1971 in a sale that he negotiated, and he helped the club sign Hall of Famer Ted Williams as the team's general manager. His grandfather saw all of his games in high school. His great-grandfather Samuel "Bo" Bregman immigrated from Russia to Washington, D.C., around 1900 at age 11 to escape Russian anti-Jewish pogroms, and ultimately married Sadie Hurwitz. He promoted boxing cards that featured, among others, Joe Louis, Billy Conn, and Bob Foster. He was also part of the ownership group with George Preston Marshall that moved the Boston Redskins to Washington, D.C., to become the Washington Redskins.
Bregman began playing tee-ball at age four. In his first game, he turned an unassisted triple play by catching a line drive, tagging a runner, and then stepping on second base. He was a batboy for the University of New Mexico baseball team, and in 2004 served as a batboy for a game against Arizona State University and his then-favorite baseball player, Dustin Pedroia. His best friend is Blake Swihart, who played for the Boston Red Sox and Arizona Diamondbacks. Bregman and Swihart played travel ball together growing up.
High school career
Bregman attended Albuquerque Academy. He primarily played catcher. In 2009, Bregman led his high school team to a state championship as a freshman shortstop. He batted leadoff, hitting for an average of.514 with three home runs, including one during the championship game that left Isotopes Park, the Dodgers' Class AAA team park. At the October 2010 COPABE Pan American Baseball Championships in Lagos de Mareno, Mexico, while he was a sophomore, he batted.564 for the gold-medal-winning 16-and-under USA National Team, and was named the MVP. That year, at the age of 16, he became the first high school player to win the USA Baseball Richard W. "Dick" Case Player of the Year Award.In 2011, Bregman batted.678 as a junior in high school and established a season record in New Mexico with 19 home runs. Bregman was named first team All-State, and received All-Metro and All-District honors. In the fall of that year he led the 18-and-under U.S. National Team to a gold medal at the International Baseball Federation World Championships.
Bregman was originally projected to be a first-round draft pick out of high school. That changed, however, when he shattered the second knuckle on his right hand in the fifth game of his high school senior season while using his bare hand to deflect a bad hop on a ground ball. The injury made him miss most of his senior season. He was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 29th round of the 2012 Major League Baseball draft as a second baseman, after he made clear that he would not sign with any team unless it picked him in the first round. He elected not to sign with the Red Sox. Instead, he chose to attend LSU.
College career
At LSU, Bregman majored in sports administration. He also played shortstop for the LSU Tigers baseball team in the Southeastern Conference. He wore number 30 as a freshman, reflecting the 30 teams that had passed on him in the first round of the 2012 draft.In 2013, he batted.369 /.417/.546 with 104 hits in 282 at bats, with 18 doubles, seven triples, six homers, 52 RBIs, 59 runs, and 16 steals in 17 attempts, and had a 23-game hitting streak. Bregman won the 2013 Brooks Wallace Award as the country's best college shortstop. He was also voted first-team All-American by Baseball America, the American Baseball Coaches Association, Perfect Game, and the Jewish Sports Review. In addition, he was named the 2013 National Freshman of the Year by Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball, and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, and was voted 2013 SEC Freshman of the Year and first-team all-SEC by the league coaches. Moreover, he was named 2013 ABCA First-Team All-South Region, National Collegiate Athletic Association Baton Rouge Regional Most Outstanding Player, Louisiana Freshman of the Year, and SEC Player of the Week, and named to the 2013 USA Collegiate National Team.
In 2014, he batted.316/.397/.455 with 16 doubles, six home runs, 35 runs, and 12 stolen bases in 244 at bats. Bregman was voted 2014 second-team all-SEC, NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team, SEC All-Tournament Team, Second-Team All-Louisiana, and named to the 2014 USA Collegiate National Team. He shared an apartment that season with his LSU teammate and future fellow MLB All Star, pitcher Aaron Nola.
In 2015, Bregman batted.312/.406/.534 with 59 runs, 22 doubles, nine home runs, 49 RBIs, seven sacrifice flies, 38 stolen bases, and 206 assists, led the nation's top-ranked baseball team to the College World Series, and won LSU's Skip Bertman Award, which goes to the player who best exemplifies the spirit of the LSU Baseball program. He was also voted the Rawlings Gold Glove winner at shortstop by the ABCA, and voted first-team All-American by both Baseball America and the NCBWA for the second time, First Team D1Baseball, First Team Perfect Game, and Second Team Collegiate Baseball.
He was one of four finalists for the 2015 Golden Spikes Award, presented annually to the nation's top college player and won by outfielder Andrew Benintendi. Also, he was a candidate once more for the Brooks Wallace Shortstop of the Year Award that he had won in 2013.
In 190 career games at LSU, Bregman batted.338/.412/.520, with 66 strikeouts and 87 walks in 761 at bats.
Professional career
Houston Astros (2015–2024)
Draft and minor leagues
Going into the draft, Bregman was lauded for his sense of the strike zone, bat speed, and ability to make frequent contact and strike out infrequently. He was also praised for his good range to both sides, first-step quickness, and instincts at shortstop, strong arm, good speed, and smart baserunning.The Houston Astros selected Bregman with the second overall selection in the first round of the 2015 MLB draft. He became the fifth LSU Tiger to be drafted in the first round in seven years, the highest-drafted position player in LSU's history, and the second-highest overall behind pitcher Ben McDonald. He is the highest-ever-drafted player from New Mexico, ahead of ninth-selected pitchers Jim Kremmel and Duane Ward, and the second-highest-ever drafted Jewish player, behind Ron Blomberg.
TV analyst and former major league second baseman Harold Reynolds said he believed Bregman was projected as a major league second baseman, rather than a shortstop. However, Bregman believed he could play shortstop in the majors and said that every team that contacted him leading up to the draft had said the same. LSU head coach Paul Mainieri opined: "If you don't think Alex Bregman can play shortstop at the Major League level, you don't know the first thing about baseball." Mike Elias, the Astros' amateur scouting director, said Bregman would remain a shortstop and that he thought Bregman would play shortstop. Similarly, Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow said that there was "no question" that Bregman had the skills to play shortstop.
Bregman signed with the Astros in June 2015 for a $5.9 million signing bonus. He made his professional debut with the Quad Cities River Bandits of the Single-A Midwest League in late June. In late July, the Astros promoted Bregman to the Lancaster JetHawks of the High-A California League. Playing shortstop for the two teams, he batted a combined.294/.366/.415 in 311 plate appearances.
Bregman started 2016 with the Double-A Corpus Christi Hooks in the Texas League, hitting.297/.415 /.559 with 14 home runs and a.975 OPS in 285 plate appearances. He was named the league's Player of the Week on April 17 and was named a Double-A mid-season All-Star. In Triple-A with the Fresno Grizzlies, in 18 games he hit.333/.373/.641. Between the two teams, in 80 games he hit.306/.406/.580 with 71 runs, 20 home runs, and 61 RBI in 314 at-bats, while playing 64 games at shortstop and 13 at third base.
USA Today named Bregman the 2016 Minor League Player of the Year. Bregman was also named MLB Pipeline 2016 Hitter of the Year, and was selected as the third baseman for the MLB Pipeline 2016 Prospect Team of the Year. In addition, he was named the 2016 Astros' Minor League Player of the Year, ESPN.com Prospect of the Year, and a Baseball America Minor League All-Star.