Craig Breslow just got his sign that he needs to be active at the trade deadline because the one player that could have bailed the Boston Red Sox out of a busy trade deadline just hit a setback that now puts his 2025 in jeopardy. Tanner Houck re-aggravated his right foreman injury during a rehab start.
That means the Red Sox can’t plan on his return and have to start looking for replacements before the end of the month. And if there was ever a time to be urgent as an organization, the Red Sox cannot waste any time.
The Red Sox were already on high alert after subpar play from their bullpen and Houck’s struggles. I’m sure they would have rather stuck it out with Houck and not had to be extremely active in replacing him. That’s unavoidable now. Boston is in a position to reach the postseason after being away since 2021, their only other appearance since winning the World Series in 2019.
Boston Red Sox have new urgent plan ahead of trade deadline with Tanner Houck news
Walker Buehler has been a letdown and now Houck’s update means the Red Sox can’t be lazy at the trade deadline, which is at the end of the month. Especially after just ending a 10-game winning streak and putting themselves in position to contend for the AL East title. Breslow once upon a time said the Red Sox would win without Devers.
That felt like an impossible feat yet here they are. If he wants to uphold his end of the knee-jerk trade that shocked the baseball world he can’t be complacent in finding some help. One player the Red Sox have been linked to Minnesota Twins pitcher Joe Ryan ahead of the deadline. This may be their chance to turn a rumor into a reality.
This season, Ryan has been one of the few bright spots on a struggling team this year. He’s 9-4 with a 2.72 ERA and 121 strikeouts. While the Red Sox would probably benefit more from a reliever rather than a starter, they can’t ignore having a player like Ryan on the mound.
Especially if Buehler doesn’t really turn things around, the Red Sox will need to find any help they can get. If that’s in the form of another starter, they have to jump at that opportunity. The Houck news isn’t great, but it might be what wakes Breslow and this front office up to getting aggressive at the most important point in the season for the organization.