Red Sox Slugger Reportedly Will Be On The Trade Block This Offseason

Boston could be making some changes to their outfield after a middling season

Scott Neville | Sep 29, 2023

Red Sox Slugger Reportedly Will Be On The Trade Block This Offseason /

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Boston Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox will enter the offseason with a new regime leading baseball operations, which typically leads to notable changes being made.

Pair that with the urgency Red Sox ownership has placed on the organization to get back to their winning ways and a roster overhaul is a forgone conclusion. Most of those changes will come to the rotation but the lineup certainly will look different on Opening Day.

The Red Sox have been long-rumored to have interest in dealing one of their top overall performers, and one of the greatest reporters in the game is adding fuel to the fire.

"I'm putting together my super nerdy spreadsheet that I have all year, I have a tab that says 'Trade Candidates' and in 'Trade Candidates' it says: Juan Soto, Tyler Glasnow, Pete Alonso, Shane Bieber, Corbin Burnes, Brandon Woodruff, Max Fried, Paul Goldschmidt, Brandon Drury, Mike Trout, Alex Verdugo, Willy Adames," ESPN's Jeff Passan told DraftKings' "Baseball Is Dead" podcast. "There are a lot of big names who could be moved this offseason."

Verdugo has been one of the better all-around players on the roster since coming over in 2020 and for a while appeared to be a core member of the organization. However, the Red Sox have been reluctant to start contract negotiations with their top outfielder. Verdugo is only under contract through 2024, which makes him a logical trade candidate.

Rumors flew of Boston attempting to trade Verdugo at the most recent Major League Baseball Trade Deadline. There even was a report that he was very close to being sent to the New York Yankees to kick off August.

The 27-year-old is hitting .265 with 55 extra-base hits including 13 home runs, 54 RBIs and a .750 OPS (101 OPS+) in 140 games on top of plus defense. His offensive production has declined slightly in every season he's been in Boston but he has an ability to rise in the clutch and had hot streaks that carried the team.

The Red Sox currently have Verdugo, Masataka Yoshida, Jarren Duran, Wilyer Abreu, Ceddanne Rafaela and Rob Refsnyder under contract for next season. Boston could afford to ship out at least one of those outfielders to fill a roster hole elsewhere, likely the pitching staff.

The easiest way to climb back into contention would be to retain Verdugo and bolster the rotation through free agency but there appears to be some growing friction there that might force a fresh start.

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Published Sep 29, 2023

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