After Triston Casas' season-ending injury and Rafael Devers' public denial to play first base, the Boston Red Sox are strapped for depth options.
Boston has stuck with internal depth picks at first base so far, including Romy González, Abraham Toro and Nick Sogard. González is currently on the injured list and is valuable as a pinch hitter and utility player. Toro isn't reliable at the plate, and they all have little first base experience.
The Red Sox could trade for an outside first baseman, but with over two months to go until the trade deadline, it's impossible to know which clubs will be looking to unload assets before the home stretch. Still, Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report has two suggestions to help the Red Sox find some stability at first base.
Reuter noted that it's possible Boston may want to shift an internal infielder to leave room to eventually promote top shortstop prospect Marcelo Mayer, but listed Rhys Hoskins and Nathaniel Lowe as potential trade options.
Hoskins, 32, is a veteran infielder who spent the first six years of his eight-year career with the Phillies. He signed a two-year deal with the Brewers before the 2024 season — the Red Sox have more than enough top prospect capital to swing a trade for a player with less than a full season left on his contract.
Bleacher Report names Rhys Hoskins and Nathaniel Lowe as potential first base trade candidates for Red Sox
Hoskins is batting .292/.396/.462 through 41 games, the best offensive performance of his career so far. He's hit seven doubles with five homers and 24 RBI, and owns an 88th percentile walk rate, which could help cut down the Red Sox's tendency to strike out. Hoskins is a league-average defender, an upgrade from some of Boston's internal options.
Lowe would be an overall worse option at first base than Hoskins, but he still has years more experience than any of the Red Sox's current choices. The 29-year-old began his career with the Rays before he was traded to the Rangers, where he won a World Series and a Gold Glove in 2023. The Rangers traded him to the Nationals before the 2025 season.
Lowe is batting .226/.305/.393 with seven doubles and seven homers in 45 appearances this year. He's already struck out 50 times and doesn't walk enough to make up for it, and he's also having a rough year on defense with -1 outs above average.
If the Red Sox were to make a trade for a first baseman, Hoskins would be the better of the two options Reuter proposed. Boston needs the offensive boost Hoskins would provide, and while the Brewers currently hold a losing record, they could quickly become contenders in an open National League Central. It may be hard to convince Milwaukee to make that trade, but it doesn't mean Craig Breslow shouldn't try.