In unbelievable, almost miracle-like fashion, the Boston Red Sox's franchise record-tying 15-game winning streak has saved their season and put them in the heart of the Wild Card conversation. Their newfound relevance in the American League has given them every reason to buy at the trade deadline.
Boston needs to supplement its offense to keep up with the other top teams in the AL, ideally with a righty infield bat. The Red Sox are still short on power from the right-hand side and the infield is the only place they could add an impact bat. Trevor Story and Marcelo Mayer are on the injured list but neither player has delivered the way the Sox expected, which could push the club to seek out middle infield reinforcements.
MLB insider Jeff Passan appeared on ESPN's "The Pat McAfee Show" and suggested that the Red Sox could look at top shortstops to boost their lineup. He named the Los Angeles Angels' Zach Neto, Houston Astros' Jeremy Peña and Washington Nationals' CJ Abrams as the best fits.
Neto is probably the best fit among them, as the Angels are clear sellers this year and he has an ideal swing profile for Fenway Park. He's batted .238/.326/.446 with 21 doubles, two triples and 19 home runs over 100 games this season. Fifteen of his homers have left the yard over left field and he has an elite 28.2 pull AIR percentage. His 31.5 strikeout percentage is concerning, however.
Jeff Passan proposes Zack Neto, CJ Abrams or Jeremy Peña as Red Sox trade deadline addition
Neto does not align with Boston's new defensive priorities, as he's logged eight outs below average at shortstop this season, but the liability could be worth it for his offensive talent. He has three and a half years remaining on his contract, which will make him a pricey deadline addition for any team, but the Red Sox have plenty of promising pitching prospects to give up if needed.
Like Neto, Abrams is another disappointing defender (11 outs below average, first percentile defense among shortstops) but his offensive upside could be well worth a trade by Boston. Abrams has batted .286/.359/.544 with 20 doubles, two triples, 24 home runs and a National League-leading 76 RBI over 99 games. Abrams strikes out quite a bit less than Neto at 21.5 percent, but he is left handed — the only lefty of the three fits Passan mentioned for the Sox. Abrams has one less year on his contract than Neto does, but he's a two-time All-Star so he'd probably cost the Red Sox a similar package as Neto would.
Peña is probably the least likely to be traded of Passan's three ideal Red Sox targets (Passan himself only gave him a 35 percent chance of being moved in his latest trade deadline rumor update). The Astros sit in third place in the AL West and they're only a few games out of a Wild Card spot. A good run could keep them from selling at the deadline.
Peña is one of Houston's best hitters, which would make him an expensive upgrade if the Sox were to trade for him. He's batting .302/.362/.472 with nine doubles and nine home runs over 56 games (he's spent significant time on the injured list this season with a calf strain and hamstring strain). Peña's righty swing would be a good fit for Fenway as he tends to pull the ball and he has a career .982 OPS in Boston.
Peña only has one more year of control on his contract, which is a dangerous investment given the look of the impending collective bargaining agreement negotations between the MLB and the Players' Association. The Astros could ask for a haul and a half for Peña just for the 2027 season to be cut short or maybe not played at all. It's a risk the Red Sox should seriously consider before pulling the trigger on any short-term contracts at the deadline.
This year's will be a highly competitive trade deadline, as there are so many close clubs in the middle of the AL standings. Any game-changing trade target is going to cost the Red Sox quite a trade package, but the right moves could be well worth it to make a deep playoff push.
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