4 Red Sox Already on the Trade Block Ahead of Deadline

How deep into a baseball season is it acceptable to start making judgments?

My rule of thumb is that you shouldn’t even begin to judge players and teams until the 40-game mark. The level of variance in baseball is so extreme that 40 might even be too low; hell, the 2019 Washington Nationals floundered to a 19-31 start before embarking on one of the great runs of all time en route to a world championship. 

But, more often than not, 40 games are somewhat indicative of a season. As of the day of writing, the Boston Red Sox have played 43 games; despite dealing with a bevy of injuries and roster turnover, they’ve managed to scratch out a 22-21 record thus far.

Despite their competitiveness, the odds of a playoff run remain slim. The AL East is still a gauntlet, and the Red Sox have been barely keeping their heads above water without the services of Trevor Story and Lucas Giolito (out for the season) as well as Triston Casas (set to miss at least six more weeks). 

Maybe the Sox stay afloat until Casas returns and goes on a captivating run, but I wouldn’t bet on it. The silver lining? This was always meant to be another rebuilding year, and if Boston finds itself hurtling out of the playoff picture, this team has a boatload of valuable assets ripe for the plucking.

Just last year, a similarly-positioned Red Sox front office stubbornly refused to deal at the deadline; the team finished well short of a playoff berth, and the Sox were left with nothing to show for it.

I’m not saying this year’s team is destined for the same fate, but if the playoffs look like a long shot by mid-June, they should learn from last year’s mistake. Here are the four Red Sox that should hit the trade block should the team decide to sell.