Red Sox Could Acquire Highly Intriguing Slugger From Athletics After Strong 2023 Season

Boston could use some position player depth

Scott Neville | Jun 18, 2024

Mar 30, 2023; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; A general view of Fenway Park before a game between the Boston Red Sox and the Baltimore Orioles at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports / Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports

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Boston Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox are one of the middle-of-the-pack American League teams that have shown promise but do not quite look like World Series contenders.

For Boston to hit the next level, they'll need some reinforcements at the July 30 Major League Baseball trade deadline. At 38-35, the Red Sox sit 2 1/2 games back of a wild card spot and will have about six weeks to convince the front office to buy at the deadline.

In the meantime, Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow could make a move to bolster depth and improve the club's chances of getting in position to push the chips in for real at the deadline.

"Infielder J.D. Davis was designated for assignment by the Oakland A's," ESPN's Jeff Passan reported Monday. "Davis was cut by San Francisco in spring training and received only $1.1 million of his $6.9 million salary before signing with Oakland for $2.5 million. If he's not traded by Oakland, he'll be a free agent."

Davis has not been paying his best baseball to open the 2024 campaign with a .236/.304/.366 slash line but would be a solid depth option as he's too talented to be a waiver claim candidate.

The 31-year-old hit .248 with 42 extra-base hits including 18 home runs, 69 RBI and a .738 OPS (104 OPS+) in 144 games for the San Francisco Giants in 2023. He also racked up six defensive runs saved between 116 games at third base and 15 games at first base.

Davis was a casualty of the Giants blockbuster Matt Chapman singing and then was tossed onto a terrible Athletics roster. He would benefit from a change of scenery.

With the lack of production out of first base post-Triston Casas injury, he could be a strong fit there. It also would not hurt to have another impact bat with David Hamilton on the mend following the best stretch of his career.

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Published Jun 18, 2024

SCOTT NEVILLE

Scott Neville covers the Boston Red Sox for Sports Illustrated's new page "Inside The Red Sox." Before starting "Inside The Red Sox", Neville attended Merrimack College, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media with a minor in Marketing. Neville spent all four years with Merrimack's radio station WMCK, where he grew as a radio/podcast host and producer. His propensity for being in front of a microphone eventually expanded to film, where he produced multiple short films alongside his then-roommate and current co-worker Stephen Mottram. On a journey that began as a way to receive easy credits via film classes, he received a call from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star Charlie Day. Day advised him to make a feature-length film, which he completed his senior year. While writing the film, Neville completed an internship for United Way as part of their NFL Partnership Program. Neville ran the blog for a team of interns and hosted an internet show called "United Way's NFL Partnership Series" where he interviewed NFL alumni. After college Neville wrote for SB Nation's "Over The Monster," a Red Sox sister site of the flagship brand. His work would eventually lead him to a job as a content producer with NESN, where he would cover all sports. After developing as a writer with the top regional network in the world, he was given the opportunity to join the Sports Illustrated Media Group in his current endeavor as the publisher of "Inside The Red Sox." The successful launch and quick rise of "Inside The Red Sox" led to Neville joining the Baseball Essential ownership group, a national baseball site under SIMG. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottNeville46 Email: nevilles@merrimack.edu