Red Sox 2025 Trade Deadline Thread

[Brandon Glick]

Hey all! In lieu of our normal game thread, we're going to roll with this deadline thread. 

As a recap of what's already happened with the Red Sox (will keep this updated throughout the day):

Red Sox trade Blaze Jordan for Steven Matz (Cardinals)

That's a left-handed reliever down. What are you thinking with the deadline coming in at 6pm EST today?

[Bellhorn04]

I think we all would like a starting pitcher.

[Brandon Glick]

Also, feel free to dump league-wide trades in here, too.

Red Sox are involved in a lot, from what we know, though I'd only expect them to complete one (maybe two) more deals today: one bringing in a starter, and then one potentially trading out one of the rental relievers.

[notin]

1 minute ago, Bellhorn04 said:

I think we all would like a starting pitcher.

SP and a 1b.  Although the 1b market looks weak…

[Bellhorn04]

1 minute ago, notin said:

SP and a 1b.  Although the 1b market looks weak…

And Campbell will probably get a shot at first pretty soon.

[notin]

2 minutes ago, Brandon Glick said:

Also, feel free to dump league-wide trades in here, too.

Red Sox are involved in a lot, from what we know, though I'd only expect them to complete one (maybe two) more deals today: one bringing in a starter, and then one potentially trading out one of the rental relievers.

Most confusing leaguewide trade from day one. - Ke’Bryan Hayes to the Reds.

With Noelvi Marte, Spencer Steer, Christian Encarnacion-Strand, Santiago Espinal and whoever is in their minors, not sure about the logic here.  “We have a lot of corner infielders, but what we’re missing is one with an OPS+ of 60 and is still owed over $36million.”

[notin]

2 minutes ago, Bellhorn04 said:

And Campbell will probably get a shot at first pretty soon.

He also could return to 2b.  Not like Hamilton is killing it…

[Jasonbay44]

1 minute ago, notin said:

Most confusing leaguewide trade from day one. - Ke’Bryan Hayes to the Reds.

With Noelvi Marte, Spencer Steer, Christian Encarnacion-Strand, Santiago Espinal and whoever is in their minors, not sure about the logic here.  “We have a lot of corner infielders, but what we’re missing is one with an OPS+ of 60 and is still owed over $36million.”

Espinal is horrendous. Marte moved to OF, Steer can play multiple positions and Encarnacion-strand has been one of worst players in baseball for last two years. He had a combined -1.7 WAR in less than 70 games.

Hayes isn’t a star or anything but he’s a great fielder and at least gives a team positive value. CES and Espinal are horrible. 

[Jasonbay44]

 

[Bellhorn04]

Wow, the Jays are surprising a lot of people this year. 

[Brandon Glick]

12 minutes ago, Jasonbay44 said:

 

Glad they're passing on him for that price (Top 100 guy, it appears). Get a sure thing right now.

[Jasonbay44]

Just now, Brandon Glick said:

Glad they're passing on him for that price (Top 100 guy, it appears). Get a sure thing right now.

Yeah they gave up Khal Stephen who’s been rising in prospect rankings. That seems like a good get for Cleveland for a guy coming off a major surgery and has thrown 0 innings this year. 

[mvp 78]

Runs really fast and fields well. Sounds like a Reds player to me. They have really focused on developing a core group of young pitchers. May as well surround them with good fielders. Breslow should think about doing that at some point. 

[notin]

51 minutes ago, Jasonbay44 said:

Espinal is horrendous. Marte moved to OF, Steer can play multiple positions and Encarnacion-strand has been one of worst players in baseball for last two years. He had a combined -1.7 WAR in less than 70 games.

Hayes isn’t a star or anything but he’s a great fielder and at least gives a team positive value. CES and Espinal are horrible. 

Marte has made one start in the OF. 
 

CES has played 65 games in the past two years.  It’s hard to establish any WAR when you’re not playing. Don’t forget; WAR trends towards being cumulative.  In this case, I know his 2024 was marred with injuries.

I thought Hayes was an odd fit, especially for a team with fringey outfielders.

[moonslav59]

So, the biggest trades, so far... (not in any order)

E Suarez to SEA

Jh Duran to PHI

Bieber to TOR

R Hesley to NYM

Littell to CIN

Tyler Rogers to NYM

J Naylor to SEA

Moderates:

Paddock to DET

D Jansen to MIL

Kittredge to CHC

Soroka to CHC

R McMahon to NYY

Matz to BOS

A Vaughn to MIL

Ke'Bryan to CIN

S Dominguez to TOR

Armed Rosario to NYY

Sewald to DET

R Urias to HOU

The tracker link: https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-trade-deadline-2025-transaction-tracker?t=trade-talk-and-rumors

 

Looking at the top AL contenders (SO FAR!) :

1. SEA: Suarez, Naylor & C Ferguson

2. TOR: Bieber & Dominguez

3. DET: Paddock, Sewald, R Montero & R Dobnak 

4. NYY: McMahon, Amed Rosario & A Slater

5. KCR: R Grichuk & A Frazier

6. BOS/LAA?

HOU & TEX has done very little.

CLE & TBR has sold.

[notin]

12 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

Runs really fast and fields well. Sounds like a Reds player to me. They have really focused on developing a core group of young pitchers. May as well surround them with good fielders. Breslow should think about doing that at some point. 

He did extend Rafaela, sign a GG third baseman, and bring in a good defensive catcher.  
 

Sox defense is really only weak at 2b, at least until Mayer returns. 1b is arguable as part timers have a disadvantage on metrics…

[notin]

3 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

So, the biggest trades, so far... (not in any order)

E Suarez to SEA

Jh Duran to PHI

Bieber to TOR

R Hesley to NYM

Littell to CIN

Tyler Rogers to NYM

J Naylor to SEA

Moderates:

Paddock to DET

D Jansen to MIL

Kittredge to CHC

Soroka to CHC

R McMahon to NYY

Matz to BOS

A Vaughn to MIL

Ke'Bryan to CIN

S Dominguez to TOR

Armed Rosario to NYY

Sewald to DET

R Urias to HOU

The tracker link: https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-trade-deadline-2025-transaction-tracker?t=trade-talk-and-rumors

 

Looking at the top AL contenders (SO FAR!) :

1. SEA: Suarez, Naylor & C Ferguson

2. TOR: Bieber & Dominguez

3. DET: Paddock, Sewald, R Montero & R Dobnak 

4. NYY: McMahon, Amed Rosario & A Slater

5. KCR: R Grichuk & A Frazier

6. BOS/LAA?

HOU & TEX has done very little.

CLE & TBR has sold.

I would like to see the trades ranked by the combined weight of all the exchanged players from heaviest to lightest…

[Maxbialystock]

39 minutes ago, Bellhorn04 said:

Wow, the Jays are surprising a lot of people this year. 

They absolutely are.  

They are tied with the Tigers and the Brewers with most wins, 64, but their run differential is just +23.  

Plus the AL East Division remains the toughest of the six.  

And the Sox are just 5 games back of the Jays despite playing a tougher schedule.  

I think this is the best Sox team in years.  The offense is ranked 4th in runs scored and 5th in team OPS.  The pitching is ranked 10th in team ERA and 4th in quality starts.   And I'm saying now that the dipsticks focused on total errors have failed to see that the Sox defense is actually pretty good, especially at catcher, CF, RF, LF, 3b, SS, and even 2b.  The talksox fixation on total errors is foolish.  Even the baserunning is pretty decent.  

Another starter would be great, but they are mighty expensive--like the Padres expecting Duran for Cease.  What a joke.   Same goes for good bullpen arms--go after them but don't give away the farm.   I see no compelling need for a first baseman or, for that matter, a catcher.  

 

[mvp 78]

4 minutes ago, notin said:

He did extend Rafaela, sign a GG third baseman, and bring in a good defensive catcher.  

Sox defense is really only weak at 2b, at least until Mayer returns. 1b is arguable as part timers have a disadvantage on metrics…

I've never heard of this "disadvantage" that you're talking about. I've seen enough Toro and Romy to know that they are defensively challenged. 1b, 2b, SS consistently leave me unimpressed. LF with Duran has been pretty rough as well. 

While the Sox rate high in DRS, they are middling in OAA and 2nd worst in MLB in errors committed. 

[Maxbialystock]

11 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

So, the biggest trades, so far... (not in any order)

E Suarez to SEA

Jh Duran to PHI

Bieber to TOR

R Hesley to NYM

Littell to CIN

Tyler Rogers to NYM

J Naylor to SEA

Moderates:

Paddock to DET

D Jansen to MIL

Kittredge to CHC

Soroka to CHC

R McMahon to NYY

Matz to BOS

A Vaughn to MIL

Ke'Bryan to CIN

S Dominguez to TOR

Armed Rosario to NYY

Sewald to DET

R Urias to HOU

The tracker link: https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-trade-deadline-2025-transaction-tracker?t=trade-talk-and-rumors

 

Looking at the top AL contenders (SO FAR!) :

1. SEA: Suarez, Naylor & C Ferguson

2. TOR: Bieber & Dominguez

3. DET: Paddock, Sewald, R Montero & R Dobnak 

4. NYY: McMahon, Amed Rosario & A Slater

5. KCR: R Grichuk & A Frazier

6. BOS/LAA?

HOU & TEX has done very little.

CLE & TBR has sold.

The lousy, stinking, no good Boston Red Sox are 5 games behind the Jays, who have the most wins, 64, in MLB while playing in the toughest Division (as do the Sox).  And the Sox have played the tougher schedule.

We are definitely contenders with no compelling needs although good arms, starters or relievers, will always help.  The problem is that the owners of those good arms expect a king's ransom in return.  Thus did the Padres expect Duran for Cease.  

 

[mvp 78]

4 minutes ago, Maxbialystock said:

And I'm saying now that the dipsticks focused on total errors have failed to see that the Sox defense is actually pretty good, especially at catcher, CF, RF, LF, 3b, SS, and even 2b.  The talksox fixation on total errors is foolish.  

You can not say with a straight face that the fielding in LF has been decent. Duran has let catchable balls simply drop due to a lack of focus. Those don't even get called as errors. To say errors are unimportant and can be ignored is just ignoring a significant portion of what happens when a team plays defense. 

This team has been the bottom of the barrel in errors year in and year out. It's not just random at this point. You can't overlook it. It's a skill to finish the play and make the out. 

[Jasonbay44]

27 minutes ago, notin said:

Marte has made one start in the OF. 
 

CES has played 65 games in the past two years.  It’s hard to establish any WAR when you’re not playing. Don’t forget; WAR trends towards being cumulative.  In this case, I know his 2024 was marred with injuries.

I thought Hayes was an odd fit, especially for a team with fringey outfielders.

The plan for a while has been to move Marte to the outfield, even before a trade for Hayes. Espinal is a DFA candidate and CES has shown absolutely nothing in the majors to have you believe he’s apart of the future. Hayes is an elite fielder and at least sures up the defense. This team has been giving Connor Joe and Espinal every day ABs. It can’t get much worse than them. 
 

Sure they have a lot of guys who can play the corners, but they mainly suck. 

[Jasonbay44]

Holy s***, mason Miller just got sent to San Diego in a package involving Leo De Vries

[Jasonbay44]

 

[moonslav59]

I think the Jays will come back to earth, at some point. Maybe, they are as we speak, losing 4 of the last 5. They play KCR next and go to LAD, soon afterwards, then the Cubs & TEX.

NO AL TEAM IS DOMINATING.

Out of TOR's top 11 batters by PAs, 5 are below .700:

.577 Santander (talk about a bad result on a FA signing)

.622 Gimenez

.634 Wagner (replaced by Suarez)

.638 M Straw

.698 Clement (404 PAs)

Their top batters are:

.897 Suarez (w AZ in NL)

.889 Springer

.865 Vladdy

.824 Barger

.782 Bichette

.775 Kirk

.749 Lukes

The Sox have:

.922 Bregman

.830 Anthony

.807 Abreu + .885 Refsnyder

.793 Duran

.752 Rafaela

.751 Narvaez

.710 Toro + .885 Romy

.708 Story (.877 since June 7th)

The Jays pitching has done okay, at best, so far, but they are 22nd in fWAR, as a team. They are 24th in ERA- and 15th in xFIP.

ERAs by pitchers with most IP:

3.84 Berrios

4.24 Bassitt

3.82 Gausman (nice top 3 SP'ers, but our top 3 have better numbers)

2.68 Lauer

6.05 Francis (They added Bieber)

2.53 Y Rod

2.61 Little

4.76 Hoffman (another bad signing, but he does have 25 saves, somehow.)

5.56 Green

4.81 M Flaherty

4.89 Scherzer

These guys can be beat, even with the addition of Bieber.

 

[moonslav59]

3 top RP'ers already traded! All to NL clubs.

[mvp 78]

11 minutes ago, Jasonbay44 said:

Holy s***, mason Miller just got sent to San Diego in a package involving Leo De Vries

😭

[Maxbialystock]

2 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

I've never heard of this "disadvantage" that you're talking about. I've seen enough Toro and Romy to know that they are defensively challenged. 1b, 2b, SS consistently leave me unimpressed. LF with Duran has been pretty rough as well. 

While the Sox rate high in DRS, they are middling in OAA and 2nd worst in MLB in errors committed. 

Your judgment, but certainly not mine.  Right now the Sox defense is an asset, especially in the outfield, at catcher, at 3b, at SS, and even at 2b when Hamilton or Rafaela is there.  1b is the only problem, and even there I'm not sure it is.  Seriously.  When I watch the games, I regularly see our first basemen make good plays, and all are better than Casas.  Yesterday Gonzalez started a nifty double play when the fielded a grounder, ran to first, and then made a perfect throw to Story, who tagged the runner out.  

I think you under-rate Story at SS.  To me he has been reliable on throws to 1b when going to his right,on charging in on slow rollers,  going back on popups, and turning double plays.   Cora has started Story in 106 games, 2d most on the team.  And he did that despite Story's struggles at the plate which hopefully are over.   Thus does Story leads MLB shortstops in total chances, assists, and double plays.  He is 2d in putouts.  

 

 

[moonslav59]

18 minutes ago, Maxbialystock said:

The lousy, stinking, no good Boston Red Sox are 5 games behind the Jays, who have the most wins, 64, in MLB while playing in the toughest Division (as do the Sox).  And the Sox have played the tougher schedule.

We are definitely contenders with no compelling needs although good arms, starters or relievers, will always help.  The problem is that the owners of those good arms expect a king's ransom in return.  Thus did the Padres expect Duran for Cease.  

 

We have compelling needs- just less than most teams. It took years to build a balanced and deep roster, and even with 5 of our better SP'ers on the IL, we are still 9th in fWAR pitching and 4th in ERA-.

We need a solid SP'er- maybe another decent one.

We need a LHB 1Bman to replace Toro (not costly, IMO.)

We could use one more pen arm, but with Matz and players coming of the IL, we could be fine, there.

While the need at 1B is significant, getting a platoon 1Bman is not something that compares to other teams' greater needs.

To me, if we get a solid SP'er, hopefully not an expensive rental (not on $ but on return cost,) I'd be thrilled.

Joe Ryan, Bubic or M Keller would be very nice. Is Sonny Gray on the IL? (How about Yoshida plus cash and prospects for him?)

Others might include M Gore or Rasmussen and rental M Kelly

[vegasbob]

I'm thinking that Breslow said, what the Sox need is another version of myself from 2013 and picked up  LH'er Matz.     Not a splash move but Matz could be a 2-3 inning opener , or a reliever taking some pressure off Bernardino.  

Will be surprised if Craig  does anything more significant .   The reality is that Breslow likes this roster and JH likes its cost.     So status quo reigns in the Nation.