We’re officially less than 10 days until the trade deadline, with it taking place on July 30th at 6 p.m ET. Many teams are still trying to figure out whether they want to buy or sell or maybe do a little of both, but at this point in time, the Red Sox shouldn’t be focused on anything but buying. Just looking at 2022 and 2023 when the Red Sox had roughly a 24% chance of making the playoffs (Fangraphs), it’s clear this is a different situation with the odds currently sitting at 43.8% and them being in possession of the 3rd Wild Card.
It’s fair to argue whether things could change over the next 9 days, especially if the Red Sox fail to handle business against the Dodgers, Rockies, Yankees, and Mariners, but that would be a dramatic collapse for a team that had the best record in baseball from May 19th through the end of the first half. That means it’s time to focus on what the club should be targeting in the coming days. I believe Craig Breslow should have his sights set on starting rotation help and a right-handed bat that mashes lefties, with bullpen help joining the equation if Justin Slaten and Chris Martin trend in the wrong direction.
Right before the first half came to an end, Breslow was in the NESN booth and delivered his biggest signal yet that he was exploring potential buying options for the Red Sox. After giving credit to the players and the coaching staff for all their hard work, he explained that “this team has put themselves in a position where we have to take them seriously, right? The job that they had to do is to win as many games as possible and they’re doing that. They’ll continue to do that — it’s my hope, it’s my expectation. We need to be thinking about opportunities for us to improve the club.” So, let’s start diving into what some of those opportunities might look like, whether they’re simply rentals or multi-year fixtures on the roster.