Red Sox ‘Aggressive’ Trade Buzz Underscores Craig Breslow’s Desperation

Buster Olney of ESPN dropped a report on Wednesday that might excite different Boston Red Sox fans for different reasons.

According to Olney, the Red Sox were looking hard for right-handed offensive help on the trade market as of Tuesday, perhaps to a point where they’d be willing to boost their payroll significantly. The nugget was dropped during the insider’s appearance on the “Just Baseball Show.”

“What I’ve heard today is…they are aggressively looking for a right-handed hitter and signaling to the industry, look, we’re willing to take on money,” Olney said. “There’s some desperation setting in there in Boston because of this ugly start.”

Report on trade desires shows Red Sox exec feels pressure

This week hasn’t been particularly kind to Breslow in the court of public opinion. A Boston Globe piece on Monday reported that legendary former Boston general manager Theo Epstein was “disappointed” with some of Breslow’s moves and philosophies, which is especially notable because the former is now a special advisor for the Red Sox’s ownership group.

If the Red Sox were looking across the league specifically for bad contracts, the right-handed hitting market frankly isn’t all that deep. Matt Chapman of the San Francisco Giants fills the void at third base, but acquiring him after sending the Rafael Devers contract to the Giants last year would be a hilarious game of musical chairs.

And does anyone truly feel, in their heart of hearts, that Mike Trout is getting traded away from the Los Angeles Angels this year? It’s the thing on every fan and analyst’s wish list that never seems to materialize as the trade deadline creeps closer.

This year’s deadline isn’t for two more months, but Breslow, likely sensing that his window of opportunity is running short to make an impact, seems to be hoping that a deal can get done sooner, so the Boston offense won’t be among the league’s worst for the next two months.

None of this means that a deal is likely to get done, but if it happens soon, the Red Sox might be making a trade that conventional wisdom says favors the other side.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow