The Boston Red Sox are considering trading two of their best players ahead of the August 1 MLB trade deadline.
Chad Jennings, who covers the Red Sox for The Athletic, reported on Sunday that the Red Sox are considering trading outfielder Adam Duvall. The team also is reportedly debating dealing pitcher James Paxton.
Duvall got off to a great start for Boston this season beforing injuring his left wrist, which caused him to miss two months. He had a slow June upon returning but has started to hit much better in July. If the Red Sox were to trade the center fielder, they would commit to Jarren Duran as a replacement. Duran is batting .314 with an .868 OPS this season.
Paxton has been one of the Red Sox’s best performing starters this season. The southpaw is 6-2 with a 3.34 ERA and 1.07 WHIP over 13 starts. Paxton has a history of injury problems and has already been on the injured list this season due to his hamstring.
The Red Sox entered play on Saturday 56-48 and firmly in the AL Wild Card race.
If they are in the playoff chase, then why would they trade a few of their best players?
Apparently the team could approach the deadline similarly to last year and do a mix of buying and selling. If they were to trade Duvall, they would replace him with Duran. If they were to trade Paxton, they would be getting rid of an injury risk and could try to acquire a different pitcher to make up the difference.
If the Red Sox were to trade some of their to players ahead of the deadline, that probably wouldn’t go over too well with the team’s fans. But not much the team has done since winning the World Series in 2018 has pleased Sox fans.
