The Boston Red Sox are in a very puzzling position as they head toward the 2023 trade deadline.
After a series loss to the Chicago White Sox, they now stand at 40-39, which is three games back of the final postseason spot in the American League.
This feels like a fork in the road where the team needs to make a firm decision on whether to buy or sell for this season.
Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom has been criticized by some media members over his handling of past trade deadlines, with an emphasis on waiting too long to make the trade that the team desperately needs to compete.
MassLive’s Sean McAdam is proposing that they deal away the player they had promoted as the new face of their team just a few months ago. That is none other than Major League Baseball’s leader in errors this season, Kiké Hernández.
“Talk about a fall from grace,” McAdam said. “When the Red Sox extended Hernández late last season, Bloom identified it as a key building block for 2023.
“That was before he began the year with a string of errors at short, forcing the Red Sox to experiment with other options, including Yu Chang and Pablo Reyes. Hernández lost his claim to the shortstop job recently and is relegated to contributing at second base and center field.”
“So, where’s his value as a trade piece?” McAdam continued. “Hernández is highly versatile, with the ability to handle both the infield and outfield.”
“He’s also a seasoned postseason performer – it wasn’t until the Red Sox’ disastrous 2022 season that his streak of taking part in October baseball for seven consecutive years came to an end.”
There is also a case to be made for how a Hernández trade would open up more playing time for the speedy Jarren Duran in center field. Duran has shown spurts of greatness this season, yet with the return of slugger Adam Duvall, is now one of three players that are rotating into that center-field role.
A fresh start could benefit Hernández and the Red Sox. But will Chaim pull the trigger and get rid of a player he had spoken so highly of just a few months ago? That remains to be seen.
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