The Red Sox may be out of the Otto Lopez business, but that doesn’t mean Boston is done circling Miami.
Lopez looked like one of the most attractive names on the market, and for good reason. Sean McAdam reported August 1 that the Marlins aren’t eager to move him, which makes sense given his .321/.354/.479 line and seven outs above average at shortstop. For Boston, though, that door appears close to shut.
Another one, however, may still be open.
According to Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic, the Red Sox have checked in on Marlins catcher Liam Hicks. MLB insider Jeff Passan has already floated the idea of Boston landing both Lopez and Hicks to attack two obvious problem spots - shortstop and catcher - but even with Lopez off the board, Hicks remains a name worth watching.
That’s especially true because the Red Sox still haven’t gotten enough from the middle of the diamond. Trevor Story and Marcelo Mayer haven’t really changed the picture at shortstop this season, while Connor Wong and Carlos Narváez have been inconsistent at catcher. Hicks wouldn’t solve everything, but he would give Boston a very different look behind the plate.
The 27-year-old is in his second season, which means he comes with more than four years of team control. He’s also produced at the plate: a .282/.363/.432 line with nine doubles, a triple, 14 home runs and 62 RBI in 101 games.
Those 14 homers would tie Ceddanne Rafaela for third on the Red Sox. He’s also shown real discipline, drawing 40 walks while striking out only 39 times, with his whiff and strikeout rates sitting in the 98th percentile.
The trade cost, though, won’t be light. Hicks plays a premium position and has plenty of team control left, so Miami can ask for a strong return. Boston does have the kind of farm depth - especially on the pitching side - that could make a deal work.
And the competition won’t be limited to the Red Sox. The market for middle-infield help is thinning fast, with the New York Yankees landing Luis García Jr. from the Washington Nationals, the Los Angeles Angels asking for top prospect Franklin Arias and more for Zach Neto, and the price tag on Luis Arráez from the San Francisco Giants reportedly soaring.
If Boston wants Hicks, it may need to move before other teams do, including the Tampa Bay Rays. They have a deep farm system too, which means the Red Sox would have to act quickly if they want to land a long-term upgrade in a spot they badly need to fix.
In Other News...
Caleb Durbin Is Making That Mocked Red Sox Trade Look Brilliant
Caleb Durbin did not arrive in Boston with much immediate fanfare after the offseason deal with Milwaukee, and his rough start only made the early criticism louder. But since late June, he has helped steady the Red Sox in the kind of way front offices hope a trade will eventually pay off, turning himself into one of the more productive third basemen in the majors while Bostons overall play has taken a noticeable step forward.
Durbin has not been doing it alone, either, with Andruw Monasterio and Anthony Seigler also contributing to the surge that has put the Red Sox back in the playoff conversation. What once looked like a move ripe for second-guessing now looks like one of the clearest wins of Bostons offseason, and the timing could not be much better with the club trying to keep that momentum going into the final stretch. [Read more 🡒]
Red Sox Send Clear Message As Franklin Arias Pushes For Boston
The trade deadline made one thing clear for Boston: Franklin Arias was not going anywhere. While the Red Sox dealt away other notable prospects, the 20-year-old shortstop stayed put, a sign the organization sees him as part of the next wave rather than a chip to move for immediate help. Arias has backed up that belief with strong play at Double-A and Triple-A, which only adds to the buzz around one of the systems most interesting young infielders.
Even with that momentum, the Red Sox are treating Arias like a long-term piece, not a quick fix for a playoff push. Craig Breslow has made no secret of his excitement about the way Arias is developing, but the club is not looking to hurry him into Boston right now. For a team trying to balance present urgency with future value, Arias has become a useful reminder that not every answer has to arrive on the same timetable. [Read more 🡒]
Red Sox Suddenly Have One Big Franklin Arias Question
With Marcelo Mayer no longer in the organization, the Red Sox suddenly have a lot less clarity about who might hold down shortstop in the years ahead. Andruw Monasterio has been getting looks there lately, but the longer view still seems to run through Franklin Arias, the prospect Boston has kept in Triple-A while he continues to put together a strong minor league season.
Arias has drawn interest from other clubs, which is hardly a surprise for a player who looks like a possible answer at a premium position. Even so, the Red Sox have treated him like more than a throw-in, suggesting they still see a real future for him in Boston. The question now is whether that faith turns into a decision to keep him in the pipeline, or whether the shortstop picture gets murkier before it gets clearer. [Read more 🡒]