The Boston Red Sox are stuck in limbo between buying and selling before the impending trade deadline, and their recent streakiness hasn't made their choice any easier.
From the outside, the Red Sox's record and standing in the American League East could make them look like sellers. They have a few players on one-year deals or expiring contracts they could seek returns for, and multiple roster construction issues they could fix via the trade market. Chief among them is their outfield logjam.
Roman Anthony's arrival and Masataka Yoshida's eventual activation have Boston's outfield at the forefront of its focus. Anthony, Yoshida, Ceddanne Rafaela, Jarren Duran, Wilyer Abreu and Rob Refsnyder all need spots in the big leagues, and the Sox have even more top outfield prospects who will need roles shortly. Moving top prospects for quality starting pitching sounds like a solid gamble for a Red Sox team in the hunt, but Jhostynxon Garcia shouldn't be traded so easily.
Garcia emerged as a top prospect in Boston's system after he posted a breakout season in 2024 (subscription required). He ascended through three levels of the farm and slashed .286/.356/.536 with an .892 OPS between Single-A, High-A and Double-A. Garcia began the 2025 season with Double-A Portland and quickly earned a promotion to Triple-A Worcester, where he's looked quite at home.
Red Sox should hold onto Jhostynxon Garcia past the 2025 trade deadline if potential additions are underwhelming
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— Worcester Red Sox (@WooSox) June 22, 2025
The Password hits his second homer in as many innings 🥵 pic.twitter.com/ZHDIKBXgep
The 22-year-old outfielder is slashing .298/.372/.588 with a .960 OPS over his first 29 games with the WooSox. He's hit nine homers since his promotion, and the Red Sox's newly Rafael Devers-less lineup could use that kind of pop. He's also made quite a few stellar defensive plays for his highlight reel. Garcia debuted on the previous iteration of Baseball America's top 100 rankings at No. 99, and jumped 11 spots to No. 88 in the July 2 re-ranking.
Duran has been the subject of trade rumors around the league, and the Red Sox should focus on trading him instead of Garcia. If Boston offloads Duran, its outfield could have an entirely new look next year, with Anthony, Abreu, Rafaela and Garcia as the stars. Refsnyder is on an expiring contract and may not re-sign for next season.
The Red Sox should've traded Duran over the offseason when they could've gotten the best possible return. Both his offense and defense have regressed and lessened his trade value. There's also an argument that the Red Sox should trade Garcia while his value is high, but he's played so well in Triple-A that it may continue to increase. If Boston has no place for him on the 2026 roster, it could trade him for another need, such as top-tier starting pitching, over the offseason.
There are very few clear sellers in this year's deadline market, and the elite options the Red Sox could add to their roster are slim. Garcia is having a great season and could secure a far better reward at a later date, and the Red Sox shouldn't blow such a promising player and trade chip on any of this deadline's more underwhelming trade candidates, especially since the team hasn't performed to a playoff level.