Red Sox Insider Drops Jarren Duran, Ceddanne Rafaela Update

While discussing the current standing of the Red Sox, one nugget that stood out from The Athletic's Jen McCaffrey was that she noted that a team source "indicated" the possibility of trading an outfielder. She also noted that the club "likely" doesn't want to trade Duran or Rafaela, but noted their names have been out there because of the return they could bring.

"How would a trade to acquire a bat impact the payroll? There’s a caveat to the information above," McCaffrey wrote. "This is where the payroll currently sits and things are bound to change. With a surplus of pitching and four big-league outfielders, a team source indicated the possibility of trading from the outfield while another source noted that having pitching depth would help bolster trade scenarios...

"Trading players with no clear spot on the roster like Masataka Yoshida ($18 million) or Jordan Hicks ($12 million) might seem enticing, but finding a trade partner for either of them (without the Red Sox taking on either player’s salary) is tricky. Though the Red Sox likely don’t want to trade Jarren Duran ($7.7 million) or Ceddanne Rafaela ($6.25 million), their names have been floated largely because those players are more likely to net an impactful trade return, particularly if either is packaged with a rookie pitcher like Connelly Early or Payton Tolle, both of whom are making the major-league minimum of $780,000."

These two have been red-hot names for the organization recently, but the fact that an insider of McCaffrey's level specifically said the club "likely" wants to avoid trading them could be a good sign for both for the 2026 season.

The timing is also intriguing. There have been rumors swirling about the possibility of the Red Sox pursuing Houston Astros infielder Isaac Paredes. Chandler Rome of The Athletic noted on the "Crush City Territory" podcast that there is "nothing imminent" on the trade front between Boston and Houston. While this is the case, he also noted that when it comes to outfield talent, Abreu "maybe intrigues" Houston more than Duran does.

McCaffrey mentioned Duran and Rafaela as outfielders the club "likely" doesn't want to trade. If the club is more open to dealing the two-time Gold Glove Award winner and the Astros like him, the club should be all-in on trying to pry Paredes away.