The Red Sox have already taken a step toward fixing their offense, but the job is far from finished.
Boston’s need for right-handed thump has been there all season. It was obvious when the team was stumbling early, and it still shows up now even after the recent 15-game winning streak.
The Red Sox are tied for last in the league with 98 home runs, which is why the club’s move to bring in Curtis Mead from the Washington Nationals for Connelly Early mattered. It helped, but it didn’t solve the whole problem.
Now the focus has shifted to catcher.
On Monday, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon reported that Boston is among the teams looking to add one, along with the New York Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays.
"A number of teams, including the leading AL East powers, the Tampa Bay Rays, New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox, want to add a catcher," Rosenthal and Sammon wrote. "Another potential trade candidate, the Athletics’ Shea Langeliers, went on the injured list Sunday with a torn meniscus in his right knee."
That injury takes one of the cleaner fits off the board. Langeliers would have made a lot of sense for Boston.
With him sidelined, the next names worth watching are Hunter Goodman of the Colorado Rockies and Ryan Jeffers of the Minnesota Twins. Goodman has put together a big season, with 31 homers and 60 RBIs in 98 games. Jeffers has been just as productive in a different way, hitting .293/.395/.535 with nine homers and 35 RBIs in 46 games.
Neither comes without complications. Goodman has years of control remaining, and it’s unclear whether the Rockies would even be willing to move him.
If they were, the price would be steep. Jeffers is headed for free agency after the season, but Minnesota is still in the race, sitting just a game out of an American League Wild Card spot at 53-54, so it’s too soon to know whether the Twins will actually sell.
If Boston can’t land either of those catchers, the Cincinnati Reds could become a team to watch. They’re not headed anywhere this season, and Tyler Stephenson is there as a possible target. He’s hitting .244/.320/.392 with eight homers and 28 RBIs.
Boston has started to add. There’s still more to do.
In Other News...
Red Sox Made A Tough Roster Call At Shortstop
The Red Sox made a quiet but meaningful roster shift by adding Curtis Mead to the active roster and sending rookie infielder Tsung-Che Cheng to Triple-A Worcester. Cheng had spent about a month on the major league roster and, even with modest production at the plate, gave Boston the kind of steady defense it needed while the club sorted out shortstop.
Cheng handled the position cleanly, working 116 innings there without an error and giving the Red Sox a reliable glove in a spot that can expose inexperience fast. The move opens a path for Mead, but it does not necessarily close the book on Cheng, who could still find his way back later as a bench infielder if Boston needs another dependable option. [Read more 🡒]
Red Sox May Finally Have A Real Answer At Catcher
With the trade deadline approaching, the Red Sox are still weighing ways to stabilize a catcher situation that has lingered as a roster question. One name in the mix is Minnesotas Ryan Jeffers, a rental bat who would give Boston a much different look at the position and, at least on paper, help address the offense-first side of the job while leaving room for Carlos Narvez to handle more of the defensive burden.
The appeal is obvious for a club trying to stay in the Wild Card picture, but the rest of the equation is murkier. Jeffers has been productive when healthy, yet he also missed two months with a hamate injury, and there is no assurance the Twins will even entertain moving him, particularly to a direct competitor in the American League race. [Read more 🡒]
Red Sox Just Hit A Trade Deadline Crossroads With Zach Neto
After dealing Connelly Early to Washington for Curtis Mead, the Red Sox are still looking for ways to keep adding before the deadline, and Los Angeles Angels slugger Zach Neto has emerged as one of the more intriguing names on their board. He makes sense as an offensive fit for Boston, which is part of why the interest has lingered, but the appeal comes with the usual deadline complication: a player who fits a need can still be priced beyond what a front office wants to pay.
Bostons challenge is deciding how far it is willing to go if it keeps pushing on Neto. The Red Sox have other ways to structure a deal, potentially using different prospects to keep their top young talent intact, but that only underscores the crossroads they are facing. For a club trying to balance immediate help with long-term depth, the question is not whether Neto belongs on the radar. It is whether the cost of getting him is the kind Boston can justify. [Read more 🡒]