It may be early in the season to consider trades and trade candidates, but the Boston Red Sox have already shown clear needs and obvious logjams on the major league roster.
Once trade season officially rolls around, the Red Sox are likely to be one of the more active teams trying to bolster a roster that, at least on paper, should be a league pennant contender at minimum. It will be interesting to see if Craig Breslow’s second deadline is about making splashes or adding around the margins, but either way, the Sox have plenty of pieces throughout the organization they can move.
4 players who could be trade chips for the Red Sox this season
Mikey Romero
The Red Sox's 2022 first-round pick is off to a solid start in Double-A. The 21-year-old lefty is batting .275/.393/.490 with a .883 OPS. After a slow start to his career, he finally made it to Portland at the end of last season and hit .243 with a .543 slugging percentage in 70 at-bats.
But Romero is completely blocked from the major leagues in the Red Sox organization. Trevor Story mans his natural position at shortstop and his successor, Marcelo Mayer, and Kristian Campbell is going to be holding down the fort at second for at least next eight years. If Romero continues to hit well, he will likely be a on the move this season.
Jhostynxon Garcia
The player with one of the best nicknames in baseball, “The Password,” is another who is unfortunately blocked by current big leaguers and higher-rated prospects. The 22-year-old signed in the 2019 international free agent class, debuted in 2021, and quickly ascended through the system to Double-A last season. Boston added him to the 40-man in the offseason to protect him from the Rule-5 draft, and that could be one of the biggest reasons they may choose to move him, to clear that spot for another acquisition.
Romy González
Romy González is having a very hot start to the season. Through 30 at-bats, the 28-year-old is slashing .333/.394/.467. The righty was selected off waivers from the White Sox before the 2024 season and quickly found a home on the Red Sox bench.
Now, the Sox's bench is very crowded, and there are players in Triple-A banging down the doors to the majors. If he continues playing even close to this, a lot of teams around the league would like him as an everyday utility piece or the strong side of a platoon. Either way, Boston could capitalize on his versatility to open up a spot for a youngster while bringing back a nice prospect in return, or package him in a deal for a star.
Nick Sogard
On the other side of the utility coin is 27-year-old Nick Sogard. The switch-hitting infielder made his major league debut last season, hitting .273 with a 0.3 WAR in 31 games. Though his value won’t be as high as others on this list, some teams could be intrigued by a cheap bench option with six years of control.
He’s struggling to start this season ( he's slashing .132/.258/.170 in 15 games), but he's shown some pop last season in Triple-A and the ability to get on base (.283/.390/.466 slash line). He’s another player who owns a 40-man spot that could be valuable when trying to add more big league pieces.