One Prominent Team Will 'Continue to Call' Nationals About a CJ Abrams Trade
In this story:
The offseason is officially off and running, and the Washington Nationals had to jump right into things when the deadline for players being activated off the 60-day injured list arrived.
That resulted in quite a few roster moves being made, as the team had to get down to the 40-man mark. Notable names like Mitchell Parker and Jose Tena were designated for assignment, and some other attention-grabbing moves could be coming at some point during the winter, too.
One that would stand out above the rest is a possible CJ Abrams trade.
The Nationals have been open that they will only trade the two-time All-Star for a king's ransom. And after the season he had in 2026 -- 33 home runs, 106 RBIs and an OPS+ of 127 -- there will likely be plenty of suitors that will try and pry Abrams out of Washington.
Red Sox Reportedly Will Continue to Try and Acquire CJ Abrams
One of those teams seems to be the Boston Red Sox.
According to former general manager Jim Bowden of The Athletic (subscription required), "The Red Sox will also continue to call the Nationals regarding a possible CJ Abrams trade," which makes a ton of sense when considering their need on offense and the fact that Washington's president of baseball operations Paul Toboni came from the Boston organization.
Whether or not the Red Sox actually have the ammunition to get this done isn't clear. Ahead of the 2026 trade deadline, they gave up a lot to get former No. 1 overall pick Adley Rutschman from their division rival Baltimore Orioles. That caused Boston's farm system to be ranked No. 24 by MLB Pipeline after they began the 2026 season ranked No. 14. Of course, that's the result of shipping out their Nos. 2, 5 and 6-ranked prospects. So with only two top-100 prospects remaining, the Red Sox might not be able to get something done unless they add some established major leaguers.
Still, this is a notable bit of news from Bowden, and it's not a surprise that Abrams would be a target of other teams around the league after what he did during the 2026 season.
Once again, Washington has to do a cost-benefit analysis when it comes to trading away one of their faces of the franchise. While they would get back long-term pieces that would help them in the future, they'd also be crossing their fingers that anyone they acquired would turn into the impactful player that Abrams has been during his career, even when factoring in his horrific defense. Fan apathy and negativity is another factor in this decision, as some of good will that was built up by the team in 2026 could be destroyed if Abrams does get traded.
All in all, there is a lot that has to go into anything surrounding a possible Abrams deal. And with the Red Sox continuing to pursue a trade for the two-time All-Star, the Nationals will have a massive decision to make.
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Brad Wakai graduated from Penn State University with a degree in Journalism. While an undergrad, he worked at the student radio station covering different Penn State athletic programs like football, basketball, volleyball, soccer and other sports. Brad became the Lead Contributor for Nittany Lions Wire of Gannett Media where he continued to cover Penn State athletics. Currently, Brad is the Publisher for Washington Nationals On SI and covers multiple teams across the On SI network. He is the host of the sports podcast I Said What I Said, where he and his co-host discuss topics across the NFL, College Football, the NBA and other sports. You can follow him on Twitter: @bwakai