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In Boston, it is the question that has hovered over the entire offseason: Will Xander Bogaerts return to the Red Sox?

With MLB holding the Winter Meetings for the first time since 2019, beginning Monday in San Diego, perhaps we are finally closer to getting an answer to that question.

Agent Scott Boras will be ever-present at the Meetings and available to engage in discussions regarding Bogaerts. Of course, there will be competition, as all teams besides the Red Sox can also make a run at the 30-year-old shortstop.

Quite frankly, Bogaerts being in limbo is unsettling to the entire Red Sox organization given all he has meant to the franchise and could continue to mean going forward.

The numbers Bogaerts puts up each year are impactful enough. But he’s also the glue in the clubhouse as someone who comfortably speaks several languages.

It isn’t uncommon in Spring Training to see Bogaerts sidle up to a young prospect during the early-morning clubhouse hours in an effort to make him feel like a part of the team.

The Red Sox will try to get to the bottom of the situation with Bogaerts in San Diego, if not earlier, and then determine their next path.

If Bogaerts departs, there are two other shortstops who should warrant the attention of the Red Sox.

Carlos Correa played in the World Series three times with the Astros, and he has a close relationship with Boston manager Alex Cora. Correa is two years younger than Bogaerts and is coming off a solid season in Minnesota.

And don’t sleep on Dansby Swanson, either. The World Series-winning shortstop from 2021, Swanson isn’t quite the offensive player as the others mentioned, but he is a workhorse who played 160 games in ’21 and all 162 this past season. He has also had 25 homers or more in each of the last two seasons and will be 29 when next season starts.

All things being equal, though, the Red Sox would be best off keeping Bogaerts given all that he means to them.

But if that doesn’t work out, at least there are some appetizing options out there to replace him.