Red Sox Predicted To Acquire Brewers $34 Million Slugger In Deadline Blockbuster

The Boston Red Sox have about six weeks to change their fortunes this season.

After starting the year with high hopes for a playoff berth, the Red Sox have been a major disappointment. They're 33-36, nine games back of the first-place New York Yankees, and they've gone a remarkable 6-17 in one-run games.

One of the key moments of the season was first baseman Triston Casas' season-ending injury on May 2. Triple-A call-up Abraham Toro has filled in admirably over the last few weeks, but Boston hasn't found a consistent cleanup hitter since Casas went down, and Toro could go cold at any moment.

Would it be reckless for the Red Sox to buy at the trade deadline? That all depends where they are in the standings. But one baseball writer believes they'll keep hope alive long enough to trade for a new first baseman.

On Tuesday, Tremayne Person of FanSided predicted that the Red Sox would acquire Milwaukee Brewers first baseman Rhys Hoskins, who will be a free agent this winter after finishing up a two-year, $34 million contract.

"(Hoskins), in the midst of a bounce-back season, checks nearly every box for the Red Sox. He’s a proven right-handed bat with postseason experience, and his contract structure makes him an intriguing deadline target," Person wrote.

"If Boston is willing to absorb the remainder of his salary and send Milwaukee a package of cost-controlled players with upside, this could be a classic win-win — the kind of long-term value trade Brewers GM Matt Arnold has mastered in recent years."

The 32-year-old Hoskins is in a slump so far in June, but he still has managed a very solid .775 OPS/119 OPS+ and nine home runs to this point. His pull-oriented fly ball swing is a dream fit for Fenway Park, and he's playing a decent first base this season to boot.

In addition to where the Red Sox are in the standings, the Brewers' outlook matters as well. This could be a buy for Boston with prospects going back to Milwaukee, or perhaps the Brewers will be the team to surprise everyone and trade for Jarren Duran or Wilyer Abreu.

There are lots of moving parts, and a Hoskins trade is anything but a guarantee.