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The Boston Red Sox have seen their fair share of struggles in recent days, with a historic loss to the Toronto Blue Jays and a five-game losing streak coming out of the All-Star break. With the MLB trade deadline just eight days away, Chaim Bloom and the Boston Red Sox might be more open to selling before Aug. 2, ESPN’s Jeff Passan reports.
The argument that the Red Sox should be sellers at the trade deadline has been gaining steam in recent weeks, given the team’s struggles. Meanwhile, Passan reports that a person in the Red Sox organization says the team will wait and see how they do in the next few series before making that call.
If the Red Sox do flounder, the rest of the league reportedly expects Bloom to start selling. Passan wrote that “opposing executives expect Bloom to be open for business” if Boston drops its next two games against Cleveland.
Passan referred to the Red Sox as the “worst team in baseball” since the Fourth of July, when they were in second place in the American League East. Since then, the team has dropped to fourth place, with the Baltimore Orioles just one game behind.
The Red Sox have been dealing with their fair share of injuries, with Trevor Story, Rafael Devers, Chris Sale and JD Martinez being a few of the names who have missed time. Martinez was the first name Passan listed as a potential trade candidate, saying that he is the best hitter available and could be a candidate to join the New York Mets.
Despite Nathan Eovaldi’s poor performance on Friday night (he allowed nine runs across 2.2 innings in the Red Sox’s 28-5 loss to Toronto), he is another trade candidate, per Passan. Eovaldi is coming off a back/hip injury that saw him miss more than a month, but could have multiple teams interested if the Red Sox were open to hearing offers.
However, Passan mentioned one name that is unlikely for Boston to trade, but is still a slim possibility: Xander Bogaerts. The shortstop is set to hit free agency this winter, but has been a key member for the Red Sox since joining the team in 2013. Rival executives do not believe the Red Sox will be looking to trade Bogaerts.
During an appearance on WEEI’s Greg Hill Show Tuesday morning, Red Sox president Sam Kennedy confirmed that the team has no plans to move Bogaerts or star third baseman Rafael Devers.
“All I’ll say is there has been no discussion or commentary internally or externally about moves related to the trade deadline involving Xander or (Rafael Devers) or anyone else to my knowledge at this point,” Kennedy said. “We’re focused on getting back in this thing and winning.
The Red Sox have about a week to make up their minds on whether they’ll be sellers, with the MLB trade deadline approaching on Aug. 2.
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