You’d better believe the Kentucky Derby will be a hot topic this spring in the Boston Red Sox locker room. Derby fever is contagious and two Sox players already have been bitten by the horse racing bug: Walker Buehler and Alex Bregman, both of whom signed with the team this offseason.

Was this pairing planned to share trips to the racetrack and team up on Pick 4 tickets? I’d like to think so, but even if it was just coincidence, it’s a perfect match … and it won’t be the first time the new teammates have joined forces.

The Bregman and Buehler families co-own in partnership with Jill Baffert, wife of Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, promising sprinter March of Time. The bay colt by 2018 Triple Crown winner Justify is 4 years old and thus ineligible for the 2025 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve, but he has a bright future nonetheless. March of Time won his second career start by 2 ¼ lengths Dec. 27, 2024, at Santa Anita Park. Trained by Bob Baffert, March of Time next finished third by a head in an allowance race Jan. 31 at Santa Anita.

Bregman played his first nine years with the Houston Astros, winning a pair of World Series, making two All-Star appearances, and finishing second in the MVP voting in 2019. He signed Feb. 12 a three-year, $120 million deal to play for the Red Sox and is expected to play second base. That’s some serious scratch to spend on scouting for future Kentucky Derby prospects!

Bregman comes from a family of racetrackers – from father, Sam, to grandfather, Stan, to great-grandfather, Bo, it is a passion passed down through the generations. Bregman’s wife, Reagan, also grew up riding and loving horses, so they launched Bregman Family Racing in 2022 and quickly became “absolutely obsessed” with the sport.

Likewise, horse racing is in Buehler’s blood as a native of Lexington, Ky., who played his high school ball at Henry Clay High School. He read BloodHorse and Thoroughbred Times as a kid and learned to pick winners from racing savant Andy Beyer’s book.

Buehler’s first foray into racehorse ownership came via the micro-share partnership MyRacehorse, at the urging of Baffert, with a horse named Authentic. Talk about a running start. Authentic won the Kentucky Derby and Buehler and his wife, McKenzie, were there to cheer him to victory later that year in the 2020 Breeders’ Cup Classic.

Buehler played his first seven seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers, making a pair of All-Star games and, like Bregman, winning a pair of World Series titles. He’s been an ace-level starting pitcher whose career was sidetracked by Tommy John surgery (ulnar collateral ligament replacement) in 2022. Buehler signed a one-year, $21 million deal to join the Red Sox Dec. 28.

Bregman and Buehler bring championship pedigree to Boston along with a whole lot of horse racing knowledge, and there will be no complaints here if Derby fever sweeps throughout the Red Sox locker room and this partnership grows throughout the baseball season.