Red Sox 'Unlikely' To Trade 24-Year-Old Slugger Thanks To Walker Buehler Addition

Sticking around for at least one more season?

Oct 28, 2024; New York, New York, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Walker Buehler (21) pitches during the first inning against the New York Yankees in game three of the 2024 MLB World Series at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images / Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Every big free-agent signing has consequences that go beyond that individual player's impact on his new team.

On Monday, the Boston Red Sox acquired starting pitcher Walker Buehler, formerly of the Los Angeles Dodgers. That makes their rotation as close to a finished product as it's seemed in years, and it also may mean an end to their efforts to acquire another starter via trade.

For a young slugger who has shown tremendous potential, it was somewhat alarming how often first baseman Triston Casas' name came up in trade discussions. After being limited to 63 games played in 2024 due to a rib injury, Casas was seen by some as a means to the Red Sox landing another ace.

Now that the Buehler signing has gone down, however, insider Chris Cotillo of MassLive believes Casas is firmly entrenched in the Boston starting lineup in 2025.

“I don’t think they’ve seen the best of Triston Casas yet, I think at his best he can be an elite player and an elite run producer,” Cotillo said on the Fenway Rundown podcast. “They’d be trading him at a point where his value’s a little lower after missing four months.

“I think they were shopping him in pitching trades as they were [Wilyer] Abreu... I never thought it was particularly likely he was going to move, and I don’t think he will now.”

Through 222 career games, Casas is slashing .250/.357/.473 with 42 home runs and 109 RBI. He was particularly excellent in the second half of the 2023 season, posting a 1.034 OPS that ranked fourth in Major League Baseball over that span.

Heading into his age-25 season, Casas may have something to prove after hearing his name floated as trade bait all winter. Rather than his value being the name he can bring back in a blockbuster, Casas has to show his true value comes when he's in the Fenway Park batter's box.

More MLB: Insider Proposes Red Sox Blockbuster Involving Wilyer Abreu, Pirates No. 1 Prospect