Boston Red Sox pitcher Brayan Bello (66) throws against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the first inning at Chase Field on Sept. 7, 2025. Michael Chow/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Red Sox Insider Surprises With Brayan Bello Prediction

Originally posted on Boston Red Sox on SI
By Patrick McAvoy | Last updated Jan 5, 2026 3:14 PM ET

With a month to go until Spring Training, there's an argument that the Boston Red Sox's starting rotation is among the team's biggest strengths.

Boston has Garrett Crochet, who is up there with Tarik Skubal as the very best pitchers in the American League. Boston acquired Sonny Gray, who is a three-time All-Star and has been one of the better pitchers in baseball over the last 13 years. The Red Sox also acquired Johan Oviedo from the Pittsburgh Pirates and he has big upside and is cheap. One guy who has seemingly been forgotten is Brayan Bello. He's just 26 years old and had a 3.35 ERA in 29 total appearances in 2025.

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Bello is just getting better and he's under contract for four more seasons, plus a 2030 club option, so essentially five seasons. There have been questions about who the Red Sox's No. 2 starter is and Bello very well could be that guy for years to come. But there have been rumblings this offseason about the possibility of a trade. A lot of the MLB offseason is just noise. But the chatter is different when it comes from a respected insider. On Monday, MassLive.com's Chris Cotillo dropped a column highlighting predictions for the years for the Red Sox. He predicted that Bello will be traded at some point.

Could Brayan Bello actually get moved?

"Brayan Bello is traded," Cotillo wrote. "This probably won’t happen before Opening Day, but feels plausible at the deadline or in an early-winter trade a year from now. It’s not hard to see Tolle, Early and others emerging as consistent big leaguers and forcing the Red Sox to consider moving Bello in a trade to fortify another area of their roster.

"His remaining contract, including 2026, covers four years at $50.5 million with a club option for 2030.. Any team can afford that, especially for a 26-year-old (27 in May) with big league success. It’s a very interesting year for Bello, whose 2025 ended on a sour note when he was lifted after just 28 pitches in his playoff debut."

Again, it's one thing when someone random throws an idea into the ether. It's another when someone like Cotillo drops information. Arguably, the Red Sox shouldn't move on. But Red Sox fans should be keeping an eye out if Cotillo thinks a deal will happen.

This article first appeared on Boston Red Sox on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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