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With less than a week to go until the trade deadline, I believe it's of the utmost importance to engage in every baseball fan's favorite pastime: confession.
Since I don't see any raised hands, I'll volunteer to go first with my scalding hot take for this roster: the Red Sox should still trade Aroldis Chapman before the trade deadline. Yes, despite their pre-All-Star-break ten-game winning streak and current standing as the American League's final wild card, I firmly believe that Boston should trade its All-Star closer. And, yes, this is the same Aroldis Chapman who has a 1.34 ERA and a 39.5% strikeout rate in more than 40 innings this season.
So, why do I include such a heinous belief in my rolodex of unassailable baseball convictions? Well, it's the same reason I believe the team should trade Justin Wilson and Walker Buehler (if he has literally any value) at the trade deadline as well: the Red Sox's window of contention extends far beyond this year. Unless you strongly believe that they can win the World Series in 2025 (a notion I admittedly waffle on daily), why should the front office not prioritize the next few seasons, when the "Big Three" prospects are all a little more matured and experienced and, hopefully, there's some reinforcements in the rotation for Garrett Crochet and Brayan Bello?
Remember, Chapman is a 37-year-old rental having his best season in ages. This isn't normal, and even if you believe this resurgence is sustainable for the next year or two, he's going to cost a lot of money to re-sign after this golden-age campaign. Wouldn't it be better if the bullpen had a stopper with a little more youth and team control on his side? Wouldn't it be nice if the Red Sox could trade Chapman for a nice haul — perhaps getting back some much-needed starting pitching help — and immediately replace him with Emmanuel Clase?
That rumor directly mentions the Cubs, though you can bet every contender under the sun will be bombarding Chris Antonetti's phones while trying to gauge Clase's availability. At 51-51 with a -35 run differential, while playing in the same division as the juggernaut Detroit Tigers, the Guardians may have a hard time convincing themselves that they are on track to repeat or improve upon their ALCS finish last year. If that's the case, they may make their elite closer available.
Now, Clase hasn't had his best season. Entering play on May 5, the Guardians' closer had a 5.87 ERA and 1.761 WHIP in 15 1/3 innings. The 27-year-old had given up 11 runs on 24 hits and three walks, a far cry from his performance in 2024 when he finished third in AL Cy Young voting. However, he's righted the ship since, having allowed just four earned runs since the start of May, a stretch of 32 2/3 innings. Thanks to the slow start, his Baseball Savant page isn't quite as jaw-dropping as it's been in years past, but he's still one of the best relievers in all of baseball.
In case you need reminding about his credentials, in 74 1/3 innings last year, he led the league in games finished (66) and saves (47), compiling an absurd 0.61 ERA with 66 strikeouts, and a laughable 0.659 WHIP. According to ERA+, Emmanuel Clase was 574% better than the average pitcher in 2024. Five hundred and seventy four percent. For reference, longtime Yankees closer Mariano Rivera has the best career ERA+ in history (205, or 105% better than league average).
With one year and $6.4 million ($4 million for luxury tax purposes) remaining on his deal after 2025 — plus two very friendly club options at $10 million per season in 2027 and 2028 — Clase is going to cost a pretty penny at the trade deadline if the Guardians move him. He might very well be the best player on the market, depending on what the Nationals decide to do with MacKenzie Gore. What would a Red Sox trade package for him have to look like? The Guardians need offense in the worst way, particularly in the outfield. Roman Anthony obviously isn't going anywhere, and Craig Breslow likely won't surrender Ceddanne Rafaela following the team's renewed focus on defense, but could Cleveland get them to part with Wilyer Abreu in a deal for Clase? Jarren Duran would be a preferred alternative from the Sox's perspective, but with less team control and nearly three years on Abreu in age, the Guardians might not accept him as the centerpiece for their esteemed fireman.
Prospects would likely have to be involved as well — Jhostynxon Garcia stands out as an obvious candidate if the major league outfield isn't pilfered — but the overarching idea remains: Clase is going to drain any acquiring team of valuable resources. It's not often a franchise can justify that kind of expenditure on a reliever, but there's few relievers with his track record and team-friendly arrangements. If it feels untenable for the Red Sox to surrender Chapman at the deadline given their playoff positioning, perhaps a trade for one of the great modern closers will make that notion a little more bearable.
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