MLB Trade Deadline: The ultimate 30-team trade
14. Boston Red Sox
Among the other Mets on the trading block this summer, closer Addison Reed makes perfect sense for the Red Sox. Reed has a 2.35 ERA and 2.91 FIP for the Mets this season, and has struck out 47 hitters and walked only six in 46 innings spread across 45 games. Though the 28-year-old right-hander has saved 16 games this year, his past work as a setup man is what excited the Boston front office most, given the Red Sox can hand the ball to dominant closer Craig Kimbrel in the ninth inning.
Reed is an impending free agent, so he won’t be terribly expensive in terms of prospects, but New York would increase its return by tossing infielder Asdrubal Cabrera into the deal.
After two-plus disastrous seasons with Pablo Sandoval on the roster, the Red Sox finally cut ties with the former World Series MVP, who subsequently signed a minor league free agent deal with his old club, the San Francisco Giants. Boston had reportedly shown interest in the Giants’ current third baseman, Eduardo Nunez, but as of Monday morning, the chatter had died down.
Part of the reason can be attributed to the promotion of Rafael Devers from Triple-A. Nevertheless, adding Cabrera, a longtime shortstop with the ability to play both second and third base, would provide a veteran presence for the 20-year-old Devers.
Working out a deal for Reed and Cabrera would also make up for the Red Sox missing out on an opportunity to acquire Todd Frazier, David Robertson and Tommy Kahnle from the White Sox, who instead went from Chicago to the Bronx when the rival Yankees swooped in.
We could expect the Mets to get one midlevel prospect in return, but with the Red Sox also targeting a Padres lefty, there is an opportunity for the Mets to spring for their next Reed-like bullpen reclamation project: Brandon Maurer.