Would the Boston Red Sox and Seattle Mariners Make a Sense Trade?
Chris Sale was traded by the Boston Red Sox to the Atlanta Braves on Saturday, freeing up a spot in the starting lineup. Offense is what the Seattle Mariners need. Could there be a compelling deal if the two parties work together?
In order to make room in their starting rotation, which was already thin and in need of reinforcement, the Boston Red Sox traded starting pitcher Chris Sale to the Atlanta Braves on Saturday.
The Seattle Mariners are in desperate need of offensive upgrades following an offseason or salary purge.
Given that they both have what the other desires, could the two dance and start trading? Before we get too carried away, let us look at some facts.
1) The previous season, the Red Sox placed last in the American League East. With Sale gone, they have even more serious questions in their starting lineup than they had before. There are bodies down there (Brayan Bello, Garrett Whitlock, Nick Pivetta, Tanner Houck, Kutter Crawford, Lucas Giolito), but there are questions attached to each of them. They require clarity and/or things to be reversed there.
2) It seems that the Red Sox are no longer prepared to go above and beyond to sign elite free agents. Yes, they gave Trevor Story $140 million prior to the 2022 campaign, but it seems more like a “we think we got good value” move than a hedonistic expenditure spree. It appears that they are unwilling to spend the necessary funds to acquire Blake Snell or Jordan Montgomery. Therefore, the Red Sox might prefer to make a trade for starting pitching given how costly it is to acquire.
