While it would be hilarious if the Boston Red Sox traded for Eugenio Suarez after the rival New York Yankees forfeited their pursuit of the top available power hitter at the MLB Trade Deadline, that's not exactly what Craig Breslow's team needs. However, with the Yankees ultimately making an egregious mistake in pivoting to trading for Rockies third baseman Ryan McMahon, the Red Sox now have a perfect opportunity to make moves of their own that allow them to close the minuscule gap between Boston and New York.
Boston's ideal trade deadline needs have been well-known for some time. At the top of the priority list is a No. 2 starting pitcher to insert behind Garrett Crochet in the rotation, which is followed behind upgrades to the bullpen, first base and potentially backup catcher as well. They've yet to make the first move, but rumors continue to swirl that Breslow and the Red Sox are quite active in discussions toward a deal.
And now the Yankees just gave them even more reason to do so. McMahon is considered by most as a substantially lesser option that Suarez in the third base trade market. Yes, he's under control through 2027 and upgrades the position defensively for New York, but he's also hitting .189 away from Coors Field this season. It's a fix, but frankly, not a very good one.
So, with the Red Sox only 2.0 games back of the rival Yankees in the AL East and Wild Card standings, Boston should have all the motivation in the world to get aggressive and make the moves to overtake the Yankees, punishing Brian Cashman and New York for their shockingly lackluster "big" move.
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Red Sox can make Yankees pay for underwhelming Ryan McMahon trade
The Red Sox left fans a bit baffled on Thursday night as they were reportedly not all that aggressive in talks with Arizona for first baseman Josh Naylor before he was sent to the Seattle Mariners. However, this appears to be in line with reports that Boston isn't all that interested in rental pieces, most notably turning down a Jarren Duran trade to the Padres for a package headlined by Dylan Cease.
But that doesn't mean that Breslow and the Red Sox front office isn't cooking. They've talked on Sandy Alcantara, they've been connected to Orioles first baseman Ryan O'Hearn, they've been enamored with Joe Ryan, and the list goes on. This shouldn't be a repeat of the 2024 deadline and Breslow's failures there with Danny Jansen, Luis Garcia and Lucas Sims, none of whom worked out.
More importantly, though, the Red Sox need it after the Yankees have now dropped the ball. New York might still be ahead in the standings, but that has looked like a paper tiger for more than a month now. And instead of acting like the Yankees and being aggressive, they tucked their tail and settled on a worse option at third base. That's where Boston can come in, make meaningful additions that improve their roster, and close that gap between the Sox and their biggest rivals.
What should the Red Sox do at the trade deadline to best the Yankees?
Ideally, I'd love to see the Red Sox end up with O'Hearn to platoon with Romy Gonzalez at first base, work out a deal for a young prospect for Dodgers catcher and former top prospect Dalton Rushing, and then land one of Sandy Alcantara, Joe Ryan, Edward Cabrera or Mitch Keller. That still leaves the bullpen untouched, but with such a crowded market there, I'd feel foolish trying to predict or hope for anything they could do there. Just add more depth to that group so that guys like Greg Weissert and Brennan Bernardino aren't getting run into the ground.
Even if it's not that exact combination, though, the Red Sox are clearly positioned with their prospect capital to make big moves to plug the current and obvious holes in the roster. Now that the Yankees have also made their first trade, and it happened to be one that wasn't all that impressive for what it does to New York's lineup and roster, Boston now has even more push behind them to make the moves and make this group even better sooner rather than later.