The Boston Red Sox have not had the offseason that they or their fanbase were hoping for.
On top of being severely outbid for star shortstop Xander Bogaerts, Boston has finished as a runner-up to, at this point, a dozen or so free agents.
With the pool of impact-free agents dwindling, Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom has discussed turning his attention to the trade market.
In doing so, Bloom reportedly is open to dealing one of their everyday starters for the last three seasons.
"Given the lack of lefty bats on the free agent or trade market, (the) Red Sox figure to at least listen on Alex Verdugo as a way to fill some of their other needs," The Boston Globe's Pete Abraham tweeted Friday.
"Not sure they have the chips to do it otherwise assuming they'll hold on to the top three-to-four prospects."
As MassLive's Chris Cotillo has been reporting for a while, Verdugo certainly fits the mold of a trade candidate for Boston.
Similar to outfielder Andrew Benintendi, Verdugo's development appears to have stalled. He's yet to ascend into the player he was expected to be -- mainly limited by the lack of pop in his bat.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora has called him out publically a few times and seemingly would like to see the 26-year-old improve his work ethic.
It would make sense for Verdugo to be available via trade in a package for a notable star, but part of Abraham's tweet appears to oppose what Bloom said recently.
“We are looking (into) a lot of significant moves there as long as we can do it in a way that isn’t just robbing Peter to pay Paul, that’s actually moving us forward in 2023 and giving us a chance to make a significant step forward from where we sit today,” Bloom told The Athletic's Chad Jennings last week.
Trading Verdugo to upgrade at catcher or improve middle infield depth sounds more like "robbing Peter to pay Paul" than to make a "significant step forward."
If Verdugo gets dealt, it would likely have to be in a package for someone more impactful, such as Pittsburgh Pirates star outfielder Bryan Reynolds or a notable frontline starter.
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