I'm not sure. I don't know how to prove or disprove this... but with the advancement of the Three-True-Outcome type baseball, infield defense has become less important while outfield defense I think is slightly more important. Having Pokey Reese types, John Olerud, etc... in the infield would be a little bit of a waste of their skills. I'm sure someone can figure out what the downgrade from an above average defender is with average offense to a below average defender with above average offense. I'm not. And I really can't put any trust into defensive stats. Xander still strikes me as good enough at SS and likely good enough for 3-4 more seasons.Not a direct answer but your post got me thinking about defense. The Sox defense this season has been shall we say lacking at times. I feel that Bloom is really big into defense. It would not surprise when Bloom gets to remake this team next off season if we see more players like Story or JBJ in his prime. Slightly below average hitters, but superlative defensively. Obviously he is not going to fill the entire lineup with below average hitters, but I feel he really values defense. That is why Marwin and Santana were signed last year and that is why he had no issue shipping Vaz out. It was also why he had no issue not backing the truck up and giving Devers whatever he wanted last off season. Now that Dever's defense has improved I think it is likely he will sign a monster extension with the Sox. Defense is also why Bogey is not going to be finishing his career with the Sox. Even though a lot of fans just look at how far a player hits the ball, Bloom is interested in the entire package and getting elite defense can trickle down and make the pitching better which can trickle down and take some stress off the offense.
Perhaps with the "shift-ban" next season, we may see a heightened level for a need for speedy, rangy middle infielders more though....?