MLBTR’s team researches upcoming deadlines, and the Red Sox continues. There is a lot of drama in Boston this year and the voyage isn’t always going so smoothly. However, before the break, the ten straight wins have made them a buyer’s position. The question now is how aggressive they will be to add clubs before the deadline. With a large number of outfielders, are they willing to use the surplus to strengthen another area of the lineup?
Record: 53-45 (playoff probability is 55.9%, per fan)
For other contestants in this series, see this post.
Purchase mode
Potential demand: pitching, first base, backup receiver
There is an elite pillar in Sox’s rotation, but it’s questionable after that. Even that pillar has a certain degree of uncertainty. Garrett Crochet In both cases, lead the club with a healthy margin from the start. He averaged 2.23 in 129 1/3 innings.
Can he keep it for the rest of the process? Early in his career, he was either injured or worked as a remedy. The turn to rotation last year was excellent, although the White Sox pulled out of his workload in the second half. By the end of June, he had 101 1/3 innings, but the rest had only 44 2/3 innings, ending with 146 frames. Whether he can put it into the 200 range and still work in the playoffs is an open question.
Even if Boston relies on crochet to fill a playoff rotation position, they need more. yes Lucas Giolito and Brayan Bello A viable candidate? Giolito has been trending in a positive direction lately. He missed all of the time in 2024 due to elbow surgery, and then in the first month of 2025, the hamstring pressure put him on the shelf. In his first seven games, he has an ERA of 6.42 ERA, a strikeout rate of 18% and a 7.3% walking rate. In his last six outings: 0.70 ERA, 25.5% strikeout rate and 6.9% walking rate.
After years of struggle, Sox will have to decide whether it is a small sample noise or Giolito step. From 2019 to 2021, he released a 3.47 ERA with a strikeout rate of 30.7%. But in 2022 and 2023, his ERA was 4.89 and 25.5% strikeout rate. It would be great if he went back to his old self, but six starts were still a small sample size.
For Bello, it was somewhat similar, and he missed the first few weeks of the season due to shoulder pressure. By eight starts, he has an ERA of 3.83, strikeout rate of 16.1% and a walking rate of 12.2%. But in his last seven appearances, he has an ERA of 2.61, strikeout rate of 19.7% and a 5.8% walk rate.
The options outside of these three are not inspiring. Walker Buehler There is 6.12 ERA in a year. Tanner Houck Prior to an ERA in the 8.04 era, the flexor pho bone strain sent him to the injured list. Richard Fitts There are some passable numbers, but only 12 major league starts. Hunter Dobbins and Kutter Crawford It’s for a year of work. Kyle Harrison Poor performance among minors. Patrick Sandoval It may be a factor later this season, but he is still a question mark now. He had UCL surgery more than a year ago but had not started his rehabilitation mission.
Unlock subscriber-specific articles, including trade rumors front desk subscriptions
- Tim Dierkes, Steve Adams and Anthony Franco visit unique subscriber articles every week.
- Join the exclusive weekly live chat with Anthony.
- Remove ads and support our writers.
- Access GM caliber tools such as our MLB contract tracker
