Times have been hard for the Red Sox since Rafael Devers was shipped out of Boston. They have gone 3-10 since that trade, and it affects them deeply. They're missing that power hitter in the heart of the lineup. There's a massive hole at the DH-spot.
The Red Sox CBO Craig Breslow wants to make changes for the better, to prove that Devers is in the past and they're better off without him. So far, that's been nowhere near his sky-high expectations. Fans believe this is coming from delusion, that he's just saying this to keep the fans tuned in the rest of the season, and most of all, to protect his job and find some time to prove that what he's doing is correct. Well, a certain trade deadline is coming up, and there's nothing more the fans would love than for Breslow to put the money where his mouth is.
Here are a few candidates that the Red Sox can target: Eugenio Suarez (AZ), Ryan O'Hearn (BAL), Marcell Ozuna (ATL), Taylor Ward (LAA), and Adolis Garcia (TEX). All these players are capable of playing the DH or are already in that spot for their current teams. Eugenio Suarez, Ryan O'Hearn, and Taylor Ward are players that are having career years with the highest value, while the latter two (Ozuna & Garcia), are having down years.
Now, this can work out in either approach: Buy a player for more value and have fewer teams fight for it due to a lack of prospects. Or, buy a player for less value and have more competition for it, mainly with 15 to 17 other teams fighting for said player (about a 5% or 6% chance). Either way, the Red Sox have the beef to pony up for them, so they can easily compete with other teams and then some. The Red Sox need to play their cards right, and here's a reasonable offer to each team. Remember, it's all about circumstance.
BOS: 3B/DH Eugenio Suarez
AZ: RHP Greg Weissert, 2B/SS Mikey Romero (#12)
If they're selling Suarez, their best power hitter in the lineup? That means they would have been losing a lot of games between now and late July. He's also on a contract year, which means his value is lower than it should be because of circumstances.
BOS: 1B/DH Ryan O'Hearn
BAL: 1B/OF Justin Gonzales (#14), LHP Peyton Tolle (#15)
O'Hearn is also on a contract year, and has had a career season to this point. It will definitely be worth some prospects in return, especially a first baseman and a pitcher, since Ryan Mountcastle is a free agent in 2027 and is desperate for pitching.
BOS: DH Marcell Ozuna
ATL: 1B/3B Abraham Toro, SS Nazzan Zanatello (#23)
Ozuna is in a contract year, age 34, and showing signs of decline. He's worth a depth piece and a shortstop prospect in return, but no top 15 prospects are worth an aging player on the last year of his contract on the decline.
BOS: OF/DH Taylor Ward
LAA: RHP David Sandlin (#9), 1B/OF Justin Gonzales (#14), LHP Brandon Clarke (#27)
Taylor Ward is one of the best home run hitters in the AL right now with 20 on the season (before July 1st), and his last year of arbitration is next year, so he's cost-controlled from now until 2027. Angels need pitching, so depending on how they do this year, they could be shopping everybody they can to groom their barren farm system.
BOS: OF/DH Adolis Garcia, LHP Hoby Milner
TEX: RHP Hunter Dobbins, OF James Tibbs III (#6), LHP Peyton Tolle (#15)
Adolis Garcia himself is having a down year, but is entering his last year of arbitration as well in 2026, but James Tibbs and Peyton Tolle are great prospects to complement Texas's aging rotation, and Hoby Milner is a great bullpen piece to get with as well.
All of these trades are hypothetical, which means a similar trade could take place. However, a general idea to consider is this: The Red Sox, realistically in this day and age, will NOT part with top 10 prospects unless it's for a superstar. These players are DH players who are either on a down year, a contract year, or not a superstar at all. All of them are being used as a temporary rental for a playoff push, and the Red Sox have plenty of prospects to part with and will be okay regardless. Now's the time to make those sacrifices if Breslow truly wants to win.