The Boston Red Sox continue to reload their rotation. Less than two weeks after the Sonny Gray trade, GM Craig Breslow has lined up a trade for Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Johan Ovideo. As part of a five-player trade, the Pirates will receive No. 3 Red Sox prospect Jhostynxon García, per ESPN's Jeff Passan.
Trade news: The Boston Red Sox are acquiring right-hander Johan Oviedo in a deal that will send outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia back to Pittsburgh, sources tell ESPN. In total, it's a five-player trade.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 5, 2025
Full Red Sox-Pirates trade details
This is a gamble for the Red Sox. Oviedo missed the entire 2024 season due to Tommy John surgery. Upon his return in 2025, the 27-year-old posted a 3.57 ERA and 1.22 WHIP in nine starts. He logged 40.1 innings with 42 strikeouts and 23 walks.
Under the hood, Oviedo's numbers show immense promise. A 35.3 percent hard-hit rate, a 29.9 percent whiff rate. His fastball rides up in the zone and touches the high-90s. The slider is a potentially devastating put-away pitch.
On the other hand, Oviedo has only logged north of 100 innings in an MLB season once — back in 2023, which directly preceded Tommy John. There are real durability concerns, and Oviedo can struggle with command, as his walk rate ballooned to 13.5 percent last season. His expected ERA (4.19) came up drastically higher than his actual ERA, a potential regression indicator.
Red Sox acquire Johan Oviedo, Tyler Samaniego and Adonys Guzmán: Grade
Boston is counting on Oviedo a) staying healthy and b) putting together a full season of his best stuff. Plenty of pitchers thrive with a high walk rate — Dylan Cease just received $210 million from Toronto — but it does decrease the margin for error. Oviedo too often found himself in sticky situations last season, and the metrics suggest that he might not get out of as many unscathed in 2026.
In a pure vacuum, this isn't bad value. García is immensely talented, but still unproven at the MLB level. Oviedo has the stuff to emerge as an excellent No. 3 starter in Boston. He's not the ace of the staff, but he can put together the occasional ace-like performance. Oviedo's pitching style can lend itself to variance and instability, but there will be outings when he feels like an outright star.
In the context of Boston's current situation, however, it's worth questioning Breslow's grand plan. He has said the Red Sox need a second ace behind Garrett Crochet — and that the 3-5 spots in the rotation are more or less full. Oviedo, for all his talent, is not a proven No. 2. That's not to say he can't take the leap, especially with a better staff around him in Boston, but this is not the Joe Ryan, Freddy Peralta-level stud Red Sox fans were hoping for. With Gray and Oviedo now onboard, it's starting to feel like Boston won't land such a player.
Brayan Bello is the fourth lock in Boston's rotation as things stand. Kutter Crawford is expected to return from a wrist injury and reclaim that No. 5 spot after posting a 4.36 ERA across 33 starts in 2024. Boston also has Tanner Houck in the mix. He won't pitch in 2026 as he undergoes Tommy John surgery, so that's less of a short-term problem. But Oviedo is under club control through 2027, so Houck will add to the logjam of mid-tier starters eventually.
Also, don't forget Connelly Early and Payton Tolle, top-five Red Sox prospects who both made strong impressions in limited burn last season.
Adding two years of quality mid-tier pitching for García is far from a disastrous outcome, and there's definite upside if Oviedo can command his pitches more consistently a full year removed from Tommy John recovery. But this probably means Boston won't land the ace this rotation clearly needs, which is a bummer.
On the other hand, Boston's outfield is crowded as is, and García's path to consistent at-bats was murky at best. Oviedo can step in and hopefully give the Red Sox 30-plus starts.
Grade: B-
Pirates acquire Jhostynxon García, Jesús Travieso: Grade
Pittsburgh is cooking up something interesting. Oviedo, again, is very talented, but he's not exactly a proven workhorse. It's probably a bridge too far to say Oviedo was expendable, but let's be honest: he kind of was. Pittsburgh has serious talent and depth in the rotation. Jared Jones should be back from elbow surgery at some point next season, joining a rock-solid top four of Paul Skenes, Mitch Keller, Braxton Ashcraft and Bubba Chandler.
That's a lot of youth, which can mean volatility, but Pittsburgh has Mike Burrows for depth (3.94 ERA in 19 starts last season), as well as other top pitching prospects — such as 24-year-olds Hunter Barco and Thomas Harrington — who could factor into the equation next season. Pitching was plainly not the problem for Pittsburgh in 2025, and it shouldn't be in 2026 either.
The Pirates need offense is the worst of ways, and García should deliver. He didn't do anything crazy with his five-game, seven-AB cameo in Boston last season, but the 23-year-old figures to start Opening Day in the outfield for Pittsburgh. García, aptly nicknamed 'The Password,' knocked 21 home runs, 75 RBI and logged an .810 OPS across 114 Minor League games last season.
García needs to clean up his approach, like all young players, but he hits with power and has the chance to elevate this Pittsburgh lineup at a position of need. As things presently stand, he would join Bryan Reynolds and Oneil Cruz in the outfield, presumably in one of the corner spots, where his agility and arm strength should lead to quality defense.
Both teams exchanged other fringe Minor League talent to balance books and appease lesser organizational goals, but the core of this trade — Oviedo for García — probably favors Pittsburgh, as things stand. It's a risk both ways, as there's no guarantee that García lives up to the immense hype around him. Still, the Pirates added a top-100 prospect and addressed a need. Hopefully, The Password unlocks a new level of contention in Steel City.