The Boston Red Sox on February 9 completed their infield with a trade, but not one that most fans and reporters expected.
Boston's link to Houston Astros third baseman Isaac Paredes persisted for most of the offseason since it lost out on Alex Bregman. The two sides clearly struggled to match up on a deal, which could be one of many things that pushed the Red Sox toward the Milwaukee Brewers and Caleb Durbin, their newest infielder.
Multiple reports have surfaced about the Astros' asking price in a potential deal for Paredes. Alex Speier of The Boston Globe wrote before the Durbin trade on February 9 that Houston coveted cheap players with years of control remaining, such as Payton Tolle and Connelly Early (subscription required). According to Chandler Rome of The Athletic, the Astros reportedly preferred Wilyer Abreu to Jarren Duran in any discussions that included outfielders.
The Arizona Diamondbacks also reportedly inquired about Tolle and Early in Ketel Marte trade discussions. It was clear the Sox were always hesitant to move cheap players with the upside Early and Tolle have, and moving Abreu always seemed out of the question.
Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow always left room for Boston to enter the 2026 season with all its outfielders, and unless something drastic changes in the next few weeks, it seems that will be the case. The Red Sox never faltered about Abreu's place on the team, and it's clear why.
Red Sox were correct not to consider trading Wilyer Abreu, an excellent defender and potential slugger, this offseason
Shortly after the 2025 season ended, Abreu netted his second Gold Glove Award in as many full seasons in the league. He clocked eight outs above average for 94th percentile range, 15 defensive runs saved, and he has 97th percentile arm strength. The infield is finally finished after adding Durbin, but while the positions were up in the air, the outfield defense needed to be as solid as possible — over the last two seasons, Abreu has been the best right fielder any American League club could get.
The Red Sox are also relying on Abreu to provide a dose of power to the lineup after they missed all their chances to add a slugger this winter. Abreu logged a .469 slugging percentage and contributed 22 homers last season, the second most on the team (behind Trevor Story's 25 home runs). He also won a home run derby in his native Venezuela weeks after the 2025 season ended, showing his power potential against some of the best players in the game, like Ronald Acuña Jr., Jackson Chourio and his new teammate, Willson Contreras.
Boston also made clear in December that it would give Abreu more chances against lefty pitching. Now that Rob Refsnyder is out of the picture, he'll need to face them more often. He slashed just .230/.299/.377 in 68 plate appearances against a lefty in 2025, but the Red Sox are confident he can take the leap.
"He has earned the right to get some added runway against left-handed pitching. We feel like it’s an adjustment he’s capable of making. He’s got such a solid defensive floor that having him out there more often than not is going to help the overall team,” Breslow said (via Chris Cotillo of MassLive).
Abreu was always part of Boston's plans for 2026 and beyond, as he should be. The Red Sox's outfield defense is critically important while the infield is rebuilt and restructured and Abreu's bat is equally key while the club lacks a regular slugger. Abreu has always been a key part of what Boston hopes to accomplish next season and trading him while he's under contract for so long and for so little money wouldn't have made much sense.