Red Sox Likely to Trade Minor-League Position-Player Talent, per MLB Insider

Red Sox Likely to Trade Minor-League Position-Player Talent, per MLB Insider originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

The Boston Red Sox have more than likely made their biggest trade ahead of the July 31 deadline. On June 15, designated hitter Rafael Devers was sent to the San Francisco Giants in exchange for starting pitchers Jordan Hicks and Kyle Harrison and a pair of minor-league prospects.

But the Red Sox still have more work to do if they want to hold onto their playoff spot. They currently sit third in the AL East and occupy the American League's final wild card position, but there are many teams in close striking distance of them. As of July 25, six teams – the Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, Cleveland Guardians, Kansas City Royals, Minnesota Twins, and Los Angeles Angels – are within 5.5 games of the Red Sox.

Adding major-league-ready talent will come at the expense of the Red Sox's supply of players at lower levels of the organization, but MLB insider Jim Callis believes the club has a lot to work with in that regard.

The Red Sox's "Big 3" – shortstop Marcelo Mayer, second baseman Kristian Campbell, and outfielder Roman Anthony – have already reached the majors, and it is likely they will man their respective positions in the long term. Other starters, like outfielder Jarren Duran, have multiple years of control, which will create a logjam for Red Sox prospects looking to break into the big leagues.

Because of this, the franchise may lean towards offering those prospects to teams in the midst of rebuilds.

"Franklin Arias and Jhostynxon Garcia, 'The Password,' are both on the Top 100 prospects list, they just got James Tibbs III in the Devers trade, who was a first-round pick last year, but they have a crowded outfield," Callis said in a recent episode of the MLB Pipeline Podcast. "Mikey Romero, Justin Gonzales are younger guys; Justin Gonzales would be interesting because I bet he gets asked about a lot as a guy who is just in A-ball and is only 18 years old."

Callis said that the Red Sox are much less likely to trade away highly-touted pitching prospects. He mentioned by name two players – left-handers Payton Tolle and Brandon Clarke, both of whom were taken in last year's MLB Draft – the club intends on keeping.

Although parting ways with top-100 prospects may give the Red Sox a short-term sting, it may help them in both this year's playoff pursuit and the long run.

"I do think they have all kinds of position-player talent and maybe not as pressing because the guys aren’t knocking on the door like the Cubs," Callis said. "But if you plot out what the lineup is going to look like in the future, there’s not enough places for all those guys to fit at Fenway Park."

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 26, 2025, where it first appeared.