Red Sox Could Surprisingly Trade 2-Time All-Star To Braves For Gold Glover

How is Boston going to make room for Marcelo Mayer?

May 31, 2019; Atlanta, GA, USA; Detailed view of hat and glove of Atlanta Braves center fielder Ronald Acuna Jr. (not pictured) against the Detroit Tigers in the fourth inning at SunTrust Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer have become two elephants in the room for the Boston Red Sox.

Anthony and Mayer are clearly ready to join their friend Kristian Campbell in The Show, but Boston doesn’t have room for either of the two young studs.

Creating space for Anthony wouldn't be too difficult. If doing so required a trade (last resort), the Red Sox have two extremely tradeable young outfielders in Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu that virtually the entire league would be interested in.

Creating space for Mayer via trade wouldn’t be as easy. Trevor Story and his $50 million owed in the two seasons following 2025 is a much harder sell than Rafaela or Abreu given Story’s age and recent injury issues.

Story isn’t completely untradeable, though, so long as he has a few months of solid plate production to start the season (and continues to be a robust defender).

One team that could take on Story’s contract is the Atlanta Braves, who could send catcher Sean Murphy’s $45 million over three years to Boston for Story’s $50 million over two.

The Braves are itching to promote their prized catcher prospect Drake Baldwin, and moving Murphy would allow them to do so immediately. Oh, and Atlanta is currently 0-7. If the Braves continue to struggle, there will be even more of a reason to get Baldwin big league reps.

Atlanta might ask for an additional asset from the Red Sox for Murphy, who carries with him a ton of defensive value. That’s where negotiations could break down, but who knows?

Boston isn’t over the moon about their catcher situation after being forced to trade Kyle Teel to acquire Garrett Crochet (an opportunity no one would pass up).

Connor Wong is solid, but he’s not viewed by the Red Sox as a sure thing in terms of a long-term solution at the position. Boston has already started its other catcher, Carlos Narváez, three times through eight games with Wong just 1-for-19 at the plate to start the year.

Murphy would be an upgrade over both Wong and Narváez, at least for the time being. He’s a former All-Star and Gold Glove catcher.

At the end of the day, none of this speculation matters if Story doesn’t mash enough to rekindle some trade value. 

And there’s always the possibility that Alex Cora could have tricks up his sleeve to work Mayer and Anthony into the depth chart without having to trade anyone.

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