The Red Sox could have had Sonny Gray. Boston was all set to draft Gray as their number one selection in the 2011 draft, but fate intervened in the form of the Oakland Athletics who drafted just before Boston. Goodbye Gray and hello to Matt Barnes.
Gray is mentioned continuously since the A’s and Billy Beane is notorious for trading players. Gray has everything you want in an ace since he is young, talented and controllable since his free agent kiss is not until 2020.
Oakland is a pitchers park yet Gray does better on the road. The now 26-year-old right-hander has had back-to-back 14 win seasons with Oakland, does not issue a plethora of walks and keeps the ball in the ballpark with a career HR/9 of 0.7. Simply put Gray is one of the best in the league.
To get one must give and that would certainly be another player that is young and talented so step right up Xander Bogaerts! Bogaerts returned from the defensive and offensive ashes of 2014 with a remarkable 2015 that saw XB finish second in the league in hitting.
The improvement as a hitter and fielder are well noted and XB expects to remain at short – Scott Boras permitting – for the next ten seasons or so. Bogaerts downside – if one wishes to consider it as such – is home runs. So what? Bogaerts had 35 doubles and 81 RBI and one would expect that home run negative to evaporate. Smart money would say expect 15-20 a season.
Like Sale any move on Gray would require a taste more – probably another prospect high rated prospect or prospects and everyone knows that all our top five prospects will eventually be in the HOF (sarcasm switch now off). The various trade analyzers point that out simply because the discussion is ace and ace is a premium price. For Boston, you go defense and that would be the light hitting Deven Marrero.
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There it is – two more aces and that gives you three in your hand. And that is usually a winning hand. With what remains? Clay Buchholz, Joe Kelly, and Rick Porcello – just think of Frank “Trader” Lane and how that situation would be handled.