Considering Craig Breslow's adamant stance that the Boston Red Sox would add a No. 2 starting pitcher this offseason — in addition to the widely held belief among fans that trading for Sonny Gray was not that but, rather, a move to help upgrade the rotation depth and add leverage — the possibility of the Milwaukee Brewers trading Freddy Peralta in the final year of his deal has long been enticing to the Red Sox for some time.
But the Brewers may have just made it enticing for themselves. It all starts with the deal Milwaukee made with the Kansas City Royals on Saturday, sending fourth-place Rookie of the Year finisher outfielder Isaac Collins and reliever Nick Mears in exchange for Angel Zerpa. And with Collins no longer in Milwaukee, that could clear the way for the Red Sox to make their move.
How Red Sox are now set up for a Freddy Peralta trade with the Brewers
While Boston has long looked like an obvious suitor for Peralta, the trade assets haven't necessarily lined up perfectly for both them and Milwaukee. With Collins on the roster, the Brewers actually showcased some quite nice outfield depth, which really didn't make them an ideal fit for the Red Sox to potentially headline a trade package with either Jarren Duran or Wilyer Abreu to alleviate some of the stress from their surplus in the outfield.
Now, the Brewers still aren't in need of outfield help, so to speak, but there is certainly room to upgrade over the likes of Jake Bauers, Garrett Mitchell or Blake Perkins, which Duran or Abreu would allow them to do. Furthermore, in typical fashion for Milwaukee, they could flip an asset they're unlikely to be able to pay in Peralta for immediate major-league upgrades with plenty of club control at low cost and prospects that could help keep the ball rolling under Pat Murphy.
That's what makes Boston intriguing in such a scenario. Not only do they have this outfield surplus headlined by Duran and Abreu, but they also have a Top 5-10 farm system in baseball to deal from. While Milwaukee, for just one year of Peralta, might have a hard time getting Boston to part with a Connelly Early or Payton Tolle, could they budge on someone like Kyson Witherspoon, their first-round pick from 2025? Or what about a David Sandlin, Juan Valera, or other recent draft picks like Marcus Phillips and Anthony Eyanson? And let's not forget about someone like top Red Sox prospect Franklin Arias either.
And as for the Red Sox, they'd immediately elevate further into playoff and possibly World Series contention, at least on the rotation front. Having Garrett Crochet, Peralta, and Gray ahead of Brayan Bello (maybe), Early, Tolle and several other options would set them up beautifully to withstand any challenges when it comes to starting pitching.
At the end of the day, though, it still comes down to finding the right deal. And here's what that could look like.
What a Red Sox-Brewers trade for Peralta could look like
In all honesty, you could sub out Duran or Abreu depending on preference. My read for a while has been that the Red Sox would certainly prefer to trade Duran, especially with the way Alex Cora and others have talked about Abreu and his role already this offseason. However, if the choice between Duran and Abreu is what stands between them and Peralta, clearing the outfield surplus is ultimately the chief goal.
The same could be said of the prospect return as well. Given Arias' status as Boston's top prospect (by MLB Pipeline, at least), he is a high-upside infield prospect to help the Brewers keep replenishing their talent by way of their own system. As for Valera, he's been the goods in the minors when available so far. However, either could be swapped out, within reason, if the Brewers prefer someone different. Really, we're getting a look at the value needed to pull off such a deal.
That's a tricky thing. Milwaukee, though they flamed out in the postseason, won the NL Central and Peralta was a central figure in that. They won't give him up for pennies on the dollar. At the same time, the Red Sox or any inquiring team, again, would only get one year of control left with Peralta. While there's the possibility for an extension, a la Crochet in Boston after that trade, that does limit how substantial the return cold be.
But getting an outfield upgrade and upgrading the minor league talent pool is certainly something that fits right into how the Brewers operate.