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Mookie Betts: Xander Bogaerts is like my brother

Boston Globe / Getty

The 2016 season should be chock-full of interesting storylines for the Boston Red Sox, and while a lot of the campaign's spotlight will be on newly-acquired ace David Price and closer Craig Kimbrel, along with David Ortiz's final year in the big leagues, Xander Bogaerts and Mookie Betts look primed to help lead the club to success, and have each other's backs in the process.

"I think we just think a whole lot about basically being like brothers. It seems like he's the big brother, just because he's been there longer," Betts explained to MLB.com's Ian Browne. "I think we just go as we go. I think we have a very similar mindset in staying even and not getting too high or too low. That's just kind of how we roll."

Bogaerts spoke just as highly of their relationship.

"Mookie is a special player. I really love that guy," he said. "Seeing what he did last year after he struggled toward the middle, he just built up and ended really strong. It was nice to see. Every time he hits, you can learn from him. Sometimes he gets a bit hard on himself, but that's what drives him to become what he is."

Although the Red Sox finished last in the American League East in 2015, the club received a ton of production from the two youngsters, and with the pair under control for years to come - Bogaerts until 2020, Betts until 2021 - they could become one of the game's most dangerous pairs.

PLAYER HITTING RBI WAR wRC+
Mookie Betts .291/.341/.479 77 4.8 119
Xander Bogaerts .320/.355/.421/ 81 4.3 109

"They're very good talents. They love the game. They play it with a passion," Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said. "And to have two guys like that you can put in your lineup for years to come, I think if anything, they're just in a spot where they can continue to get better. They serve as a real good young core for us moving forward. They are the top young players in the game of baseball."

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