Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Mitch Keller is one of the best available starting pitchers on the trade market this season.
The right-hander is tied for the MLB lead with 15 quality starts and owns a 3.53 ERA through his first 21 outings of the season.
The Pirates will be sellers leading up to the July 31 trade deadline, and it’s possible they opt to move Keller to try and improve an offensive unit that has been one of the worst in the league this season.
There are several teams that have been linked to Keller this month, including the Chicago Cubs, New York Mets, Toronto Blue Jays. While any of those teams could be a potential landing spot, there are a number of others that also make sense.
One of those potential teams is the Boston Red Sox, who Mike Axisa of CBS Sports predicts land Keller prior to the deadline.
Boston and Pittsburgh matchup well in a potential deal. The Pirates are in need of lineup upgrades and the Red Sox have outfield depth on their active roster as well as in their farm system, and there are several guys who could appeal to the Pirates.
Boston has six outfielders on their current 26-man roster — Wilyer Abreu, Roman Anthony, Jarren Duran, Ceddanne Rafaela, Rob Refsnyder and Masataka Yoshida.
While it’s unknown who the Red Sox could be willing to part with, it has been widely speculated that Duran could be dealt to help shore up the rotation.
Duran, who was an All-Star last season and finished eighth in the American League MVP race, carries a .257/.323/.433 batting line this season with a league-leading 10 triples, 25 doubles, nine home runs, 51 RBI and 16 stolen bases.
Down on the farm, MLB Pipeline ranks Triple-A Worcester outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia as the 96th-best prospect in baseball. James Tibbs, a 2024 first-round pick of the Giants who was dealt to Boston last month in the Rafael Devers trade, could also be of interest to Pittsburgh.
Following his start against the Detroit Tigers at PNC Park on Tuesday night, Keller said he is aware of the trade rumors but hasn’t been distracted by them.