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Red Sox Chief of Baseball Operations Craig Breslow

When the Boston Red Sox broke training camp in late March, they did so carrying five starting outfielders for three positions. That’s not something you see every day or every year.

It left former manager Alex Cora in a tough spot. He had to manage all five players’ playing time, and in the end, nobody is happy. As we enter the first full week of May, the Red Sox are one of the biggest disappointments in MLB. Cora was fired nine days ago, and Chad Tracy has been named interim manager after getting the call from the Worcester Red Sox, Boston’s Triple-A affiliate.

Now he is tasked with determining the playing time for the five outfielders across three spots. However, if things don’t turn around for Boston, there could be some trades coming from Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow.

Boston Red Sox Outfielder Jarren Duran Tabbed Trade Deadline “Hot Commodity”

There were rumors all offseason that Breslow might trade one of his outfielders. If he did, it made sense that it would have been either Jarren Duran or Wilyer Abreu. However, Abreu has been one of the best, if not the best, hitters for the Red Sox this season, which leaves Duran as the clear trade chip. According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, Duran and Sandy Alcantara of the Miami Marlins are going to be deadline “hot commodities.”

“Dave Dombrowski, Phillies president of baseball operations, said that with so many teams with big payrolls struggling this year, trade talks have already picked up. The hottest commodity at the trade deadline is expected to be Miami Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara, and the Boston Red Sox could trade left-handed hitting outfielder Jarren Duran before the Aug. 3 deadline,” Nightngale wrote.

Neither player being mentioned as potentially being moved at the trade deadline isn’t surprising. Alcantara is a starting pitcher that haas been the subject of trade rumors for a while. Teams are always looking for outfielders at the deadline, and maybe a change of scenery might do him some good. If Boston continues to struggle, there could be bigger changes by Breslow.

Boston Red Sox Still Have Outfield Questions

There is no easy way for Breslow to go about this. Making trades is the easiest way to loosen the logjam. Roman Anthony, despite his struggles, isn’t going anywhere. Ceddanne Rafaela is their best center fielder and a Gold Glove winner. Abreu has won two straight Gold Gloves. Masataka Yoshida has been stuck in a lot of pinch-hitting roles. Trading him and his contract will be tough. However, if a team is willing to listen, anything is possible.

After dropping two out of three at home to the Houston Astros this past weekend, Boston hits the road for three games in Detroit. They face Tarik Skubal and Framber Valdez in the first two games. They then get Jack Flaherty in the final game. Winning the series will be difficult. If they continue to fall further behind, more changes might be coming.

Several players could be moved. However, in the end, moving Duran makes the most sense, and there would be enough suitors for it to happen.