Interest kings: Red Sox pushed, came up short for impact starters at deadline

The interest kings strike yet again.

After a whirlwind of deals around Major League Baseball, and especially among the Boston Red Sox' top competition in the American League, Craig Breslow ultimately settled for a back-of-the-rotation starter and lefty specialist for the bullpen at the 2025 trade deadline. The Red Sox acquired starter Dustin May from the Dodgers and veteran Steven Matz from the Cardinals.

And, as is tradition, the biggest reported names are players that the Red Sox did not acquire. According to MLB Network insider Jon Morosi, the Red Sox were among three teams that showed interest in Nationals starter MacKenzie Gore, who ultimately wasn't traded. Multiple reports indicated that they were making a push to acquire veteran Merrill Kelly, who ended up being moved from the Diamondbacks to the Rangers.

On the other hand, the Red Sox apparently didn't make nearly a strong-enough push to get All-Star Joe Ryan from the Twins. MassLive's Chris Cotillo reported that Boston was "not even close" on that front, despite rumors and even an erroneous tweet by the MLB Network.

To be fair to the Red Sox and chief baseball officer Craig Breslow, the deadline wasn't busy for cost-effective starters under team control. It was more of a rental market. The price tag seemed to be too high for anyone across baseball for a pitcher like Gore, who has a 3.80 ERA and 148 strikeouts in 123 innings, and is arbitration-eligible over the next two seasons.

^{Merrill Kelly (pictured above) reportedly drew interest from the Red Sox, before being traded to the Rangers.}

But to hear after the fact that the Red Sox had interest in these guys, and didn't actually land them, is to experience what's become an annual tradition for Fenway Sports Group. It's been a long time since they've been willing to really invest in a push for October baseball. And for it to happen when they sit in a Wild Card spot at the time of the deadline, it stings extra hard.

Still, that's what we're used to at this point. Can't be surprised. They haven't been the kings of baseball for years. They're the kings of (fake) interest.