The Boston Red Sox have an overloaded outfield, and it got more packed this week when chief baseball officer Craig Breslow said that versatile prospect Kristian Campbell would be played permanently in the outfield as well. Campbell bounced between middle infield and the outfield in his short stint with the major league club at the start of this year, before being optioned to Triple-A Worcester for the duration of the campaign.
But before sending him down, the Red Sox inked the 23-year-old Campbell — ranked by Baseball America as the No. 4 prospect in the game prior to the season — to an eight-year, $60 million contract extension, so the organization would be understandably reluctant to trade him, assuming it could find any takers.
With Wilyer Abreu in right field and Ceddanne Rafaela in center winning their second and first Gold Gloves respectively, and last year’s No. 1 prospect in the game, Roman Anthony, viewed as the future of the franchise, that leaves 29-year-old Jarren Duran, entering his sixth major league season, as the odd man out.
On Thursday, Katie Manganelli of the BoSox Injection site, proposed an idea for what the Red Sox could do with Duran. Namely, trade him to the Kansas City Royals.
The return for the Red Sox? First baseman Vinnie Pasquantino, who belted 32 home runs this year, a high for the 2019 11th-round draft pick’s career.
Financially, the deal would have minimal impact on either team. Duran recently signed a one-year, $7.5 million contract for next season. Pasquantino will be eligible for his first year of arbitration. According to the sports business site Spotrac, the 28-year-old out of Old Dominion is estimated to be in line for a $5.25 million award.
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The Royals are in the opposite situation from the Red Sox in their outfield. They need upgrades. No player who took regular time in the outfield for Kansas City this year managed an OPS higher than .656. Even Kansas City’s highly touted prospect (No. 13 overall per Keith Law of The Athletic) Jac Caglianone floundered in his debut season, with a .532 OPS and seven home runs in 62 games.
The one exception was seven-year veteran Mike Yastrzemski, who came over in a trade deadline deal from the San Francisco Giants and posted a solid .839 OPS with nine home runs in the 50 games he played for the Royals. But Yastrzemski is now a free agent estimated by Spotrac to earn an $11.3 million contract next season, which could be more than the Royals would want to spend.
For the Red Sox, Pasquantino brings a solid bat at first base — and would free the Red Sox to trade 2018 first-round pick Triston Casas as he comes back from the knee injury that sidelined him for all but 29 games this year, after he missed 99 in 2024 mainly due to a ribcage injury.
Casas has come up in trade rumors linking the Red Sox to various starting pitchers, including former Cy Young Award winner Sandy Alcantara of the Miami Marlins.
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