The Red Sox didn’t wait long to start shopping.
After ripping off nine straight wins before the All-Star break, Boston has pushed itself into the thick of the AL Wild Card race, sitting less than a game behind the Minnesota Twins and Seattle Mariners for the third and final spot. That kind of surge changes everything. A team that looked like it might be on the fringe now has every reason to act like a buyer.
And the first move is in.
According to The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier, Boston has acquired outfielder Jahmai Jones from the Detroit Tigers in exchange for a player to be named later.
Jones was designated for assignment by Detroit last week after a rough stretch at the plate. In 57 games, the 28-year-old hit .137/.219/.221 with two home runs and a .440 OPS. That came after a strong year offensively in 2025, but the Tigers’ usage told the story of how they viewed him: mostly as a fourth outfielder, with most of his chances coming against left-handed pitching.
That split was where Jones did his best work. Of his 150 plate appearances last season, 122 came against southpaws, and he hit .288 with a .970 OPS in those matchups.
The concern has been the swing-and-miss. Jones’ strikeout rate has climbed from 21.3% to 33.3%, while his walk rate has dropped by 2.5%.
Boston is betting it can clean some of that up. The Red Sox are taking a shot that a few mechanical adjustments can get him back on track, and they’ll have to do it without the benefit of minor league options, which Jones no longer has.
For a club that suddenly looks like a real deadline player, this is just the opening move.
In Other News...
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Reiss is betting on the Patriots offense to keep climbing, with Drake Mayes continued development and A.J. Brown stepping in as the kind of top target that can change the shape of the unit. It is the sort of forecast that makes sense if the key pieces keep moving in the right direction, but it also leaves the familiar question hanging over Foxborough: whether the Patriots have enough around those two to make the pick look bold instead of premature. [Read more 🡒]
Patriots Still Have One Defensive Weak Spot They May Need To Fix
The Patriots went into the offseason with a defense that already looked sturdy at the top, then doubled down by keeping nine of last years 11 starters and adding DreMont Jones and Kevin Byard. On paper, that is the kind of retention and reinforcement that should keep New England competitive on that side of the ball, especially with established talent at the core and fewer obvious holes than in recent years.
Still, the concern around the unit is not the first string, it is what comes after it. Depth remains the lingering question, and that is why the Patriots have been connected to a veteran safety who can move around the formation and help in a pinch. He is not being viewed as a long-term fix, but for a team trying to protect itself against injuries and thin spots, he could be the sort of low-cost addition that makes sense if New England decides it needs one more layer of insurance. [Read more 🡒]