Red Sox Youngster Facing Increased Pressure Following Chris Sale's Cy Young Award

Can the perception of a lopsided trade change with time?

Sep 28, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox second baseman Vaughn Grissom (5) chases a loose ball during the seventh inning of a game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images / Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images

One day, Vaughn Grissom hopes to make his mark on Boston Red Sox history. But for now, he's been harshly stamped as the guy who was traded for Chris Sale.

Last December, the Red Sox shipped Sale, who had constantly dealt with injuries for the past five seasons, to the Atlanta Braves in exchange for Grissom, a former top prospect who looked like a future everyday second baseman. One year in, the returns haven't reflected well on Boston.

Sale didn't just stay healthy for the first time since 2018, he was better than ever before. He won the Triple Crown, leading the National League in wins (18), strikeouts (225) and ERA (2.38), capping off a remarkable comeback campaign with his first career Cy Young Award on Wednesday.

Shipping off a player that valuable will always result in some egg on a team's face, but Grissom's struggles made the deal all the more frustrating for Boston. The 23-year-old appeared in just 31 games at the big-league level, dealing with injuries himself, and batting .190 with a .465 OPS.

To cap it off, the two things that arguably hurt the Red Sox most of all this season were the lack of an ace starting pitcher, which Sale was in Atlanta, and the lack of a productive second baseman, which Grissom was supposed to be, Boston ranked dead last among all teams in fWAR by second basemen.

Grissom isn't out of chances to make an impact in Boston, but he certainly doesn't have much time to spare. In addition to utility options David Hamilton and Romy González at the big-league level, the Red Sox have top prospect Kristian Campbell bearing down on the majors after a torrid campaign across three minor-league levels.

The Red Sox might well say that they're happy for Sale and his success, but regardless of whether or not they care about "winning" the trade, there's no doubt Sale's Cy Young Award puts Grissom under a microscope. He's got to lock down a starting job in 2025 to stop Boston from becoming a laughingstock in the history books.

The Red Sox are unfortunately familiar with making lopsided trades for their longtime superstars. In 2020, they shipped former Most Valuable Player Mookie Betts to the Los Angeles Dodgers, where he has since won two World Series. The best thing they got in return was Connor Wong, who was a slightly-above-average starting catcher last season.

Time is running out for Grissom to become another unfortunate footnote in Red Sox history. He's got to show up to Spring Training with his hair on fire in pursuit of a breakout season.

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