Proposed Red Sox trade sees Boston deal Payton Tolle-based package for $5.8 million All-Star, Gold Glove originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Boston Red Sox have missed out on a lot of big free agents, and while they were able to snag an All-Star pitcher in Ranger Suarez, it seems if they want to upgrade offensively, they’ll need to do it through trade. Luckily, it seems a recurring trade partner could be up for one more trade.
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According to Fansided’s Zachary Rotman, the Sox should link up with their old GM Chaim Bloom, and the St. Louis Cardinals for one last trade, this time for All-Star Brendan Donovan.
The trade would look like this:
Red Sox get: UTIL Brendan Donovan
Cardinals get: LHP Payton Tolle (MLB No. 28 Prospect), LHP Kyle Harrison, RHP Juan Valera
“The Red Sox have arguably the most starting pitching depth in the league, even without Tolle and Harrison, and even without Tolle, Connelly Early is a high end, MLB-ready left-handed pitching prospect for them to be excited about. No, this absurd depth doesn’t mean the Red Sox should just give Tolle away, but Donovan would be a major upgrade and fit what the team is reportedly looking for…Adding another left-handed hitter might be less-than-ideal, but Donovan checks every other box. After whiffing on impactful position player free agents like Pete Alonso, Alex Bregman and Bo Bichette, it’s on Craig Breslow to be aggressive in the trade market. Parting with three starters they really don’t need all that much to fill a glaring hole feels like an obvious move to make,” Rotman wrote.
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This past season, Donovan slashed .287/.353/.422/.775 with 32 doubles, 10 home runs, and 64 RBI in 118 games played. He would fill the void at second base left by Dustin Pedroia, and fill it with a Gold Glove on top of his All-Star nod.
He’d be cheap too, as he’s slated to make $5.8 million this year, and has one more year of control left on his contract.
Hopefully, the Sox make this trade, and make sure not to lose him to free agency like Alex Bregman by signing him to an extension ASAP.
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