After a tumultuous few months, the Boston Red Sox are in the driver's seat of the American League Wild Card race.
Nothing is set in stone yet — the Yankees and the loser of the Mariners and Astros' AL West battle also look like locks for the postseason — but it's clear that Boston has positioned itself for a deep playoff run, despite a lackluster performance at the trade deadline.
So, who should fans be thanking for this impressive season? Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow obviously made some wise moves to position the team for this kind of run, though not all of them were celebrated at the time.
Note that we're focusing on "surprise decisions" here. You can define that in a myriad of ways, but for our purposes, it means "unsung" or "underrated" moves. As such, you won't see Garrett Crochet or Alex Bregman — as pleasantly surprising as those acquisitions were — on this list.
3 underrated Red Sox offseason moves that have positioned Boston for playoffs
Not trading Jarren Duran
Sometimes, the best moves you make are the ones you don't make. Following a brilliant 2024 campaign that saw him finish eighth in MVP voting while leading the junior circuit in doubles, triples, and plate appearances, the rumor vultures started swirling around Jarren Duran.
With Ceddanne Rafaela locked into an eight-year contract extension and Wilyer Abreu emerging as a Gold Glover in his rookie season, Duran looked like the odd man out in an outfield rotation that also contained Masataka Yoshida and was set to introduce top prospect Roman Anthony to the world.
Instead, the Red Sox held onto their star outfielder tight, keeping him locked in as their starting left fielder. He's rewarded their loyalty, slashing .265/.335/.456 with 19 steals atop the lineup.
There's no telling what his future in Boston holds, but for now, Duran remains a constant on a young team on the rise.
Trading for Carlos Narváez
The most obvious candidate for this exercise, Carlos Narváez has been a revelation in Boston. He's helped fans forget all about top prospect Kyle Teel, who was traded away in the Garrett Crochet blockbuster.
The rookie catcher, who was acquired from the Yankees in a minor trade over the offseason for prospect Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz, is slashing .250/.320/.418 in 88 games this season, completely taking over the starting backstop job from the struggling Connor Wong.
Narváez's 2.5 fWAR ranks fifth among regulars on the Red Sox, and he ranks fourth among all MLB catchers in the same statistic. By every notable metric, he has become one of the best players on the roster this year, and his presence behind the plate creates a semblance of certainty for an organization that doesn't have much in the way of other catching depth.
Signing free agent Justin Wilson
Though far less celebrated than the signing of fellow lefty reliever Aroldis Chapman, Breslow's decision to ink soon-to-be 38-year-old Justin Wilson to a one-year pact has proven to be a stroke of genius.
In 36 innings this season, Wilson has authored a 2.75 ERA and 2.88 FIP, both of which rank second among current members of the bullpen behind only Chapman. The veteran southpaw has a 27.7% strikeout rate, his highest mark in a full campaign since 2018. He's also generating soft contact at an extraordinary rate, hence his impressive expected stats despite a relatively high walk total (3.5 BB/9).
He's hardly the most heralded member of the bullpen, and he certainly doesn't throw as hard as guys like Chapman or Jordan Hicks, but it's hard to imagine who Alex Cora would have to rely on without Wilson.