MLB Teams Reportedly Trying To Convince Red Sox To Trade All-Star Pitcher

Boston's top pitcher is getting league-wide attention

Scott Neville | Dec 25, 2022

MLB Teams Reportedly Trying To Convince Red Sox To Trade All-Star Pitcher /

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Boston Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox reportedly are receiving calls regarding the most decorated member of the roster as the Major League Baseball trade market begins to heat up.

By most accounts, the Red Sox's rotation is not an area of strength, but that has not stopped opponents from checking in to see if Boston would consider dealing a prominent member of the group.

"Teams are checking on Chris Sale’s availability," the New York Post's Jon Heyman tweeted Sunday. "(The) Red Sox are not looking to trade any of their starters but view (their) rotation as an area of depth and are at least willing to listen, and consider. Sale does have (a) complete no-trade clause so he can veto potential deals."

The little nugget regarding the Red Sox's front office feeling as though the rotation is an area of depth after the group was abysmal a season ago and has since lost three members of the rotation -- Nathan Eovaldi, Michael Wacha and Rich Hill -- is stunning, to say the least, but they certainly have the numbers to deal a starter.

As far as a Sale trade goes, it would not make a lot of sense. The 33-year-old is owed $55 million over the next two seasons after making just 11 starts over the last three seasons.

It would be a sell-low, salary dump for Boston that would not be wise of Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom unless another team wildly accepts the bulk of his contract and there is a plan to allocate the funds elsewhere.

Even still, one of the only ways Boston can compete for anything meaningful in 2023 is if Sale turns back the clock and has a vintage, ace-like season.

Since the Red Sox appear to have little interest in spending money, dealing Sale would essentially just remove the team of their best lottery ticket and likely return next to nothing.

There are only two ways the trade gets done.

Boston could eat the majority of the contract and acquire some mid-level prospect or underperforming major-league-ready player in return. Or, some team could eat the majority of Sale's insanely inflated contract and would receive a decent prospect along with the southpaw in return -- similar to the Red Sox's acquisition of Adam Ottavino and Franklin German from the New York Yankees prior to the 2021 season.

Neither option would be enticing for the Red Sox. Though it would be ideal to shed one of the worst contracts in recent memory, it doesn't seem like the club would use the open payroll, and the fans should not be worried about John Henry's wallet.

More MLB: Red Sox Wish List; How Boston Can Successfully Build Out Roster

Published Dec 25, 2022

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