3 Big Moves Craig Breslow Must Make Immediately in Boston

3. Trade Alex Verdugo

Alex Verdugo has worn out his welcome in Boston, and it's time for him to go.

Verdugo is entering his final year of team control, and the front office has shown zero interest in extending him. Unless Breslow feels strongly about keeping him around beyond 2024, he should trade Verdugo this offseason.

Bloom was oddly committed to Verdugo, likely because he was the best thing Bloom got back in the disastrous Mookie Betts trade. Breslow won't feel the same level of attachment, however, and should be willing to move on.

Verdugo is a fine player, but there are plenty of reasons to part ways with him. His defense, hitting and baserunning are all extremely erratic, as is his attendance. Cora was forced to bench him last summer after he showed up late to a critical midseason game against the Toronto Blue Jays.

That wasn't the first time Cora has clashed with Verdugo, either. Cora called him out after 2022 in an effort to improve his performance, but instead Verdugo's numbers remained essentially the same in 2023.

Verdugo would be worth the headaches if he was a superstar a la Manny Ramirez, but he's not even an All-Star. He's an average MLB outfielder, and those aren't too hard to find. The Red Sox already have a logjam in the outfield anyway with Masataka Yoshida, Jarren Duran, Ceddanne Rafaela and others vying for playing time out there as well.

At this point, trading Verdugo is almost addition by subtraction, so Breslow should take whatever he can get for him.

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