Alex Cora Hints Red Sox Landed Hidden Gem in Brewers Trade

Did Boston get two key pieces of its infield?

Jul 3, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Detailed view of a Milwaukee Brewers cap and glove during the game against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

In the 10 days since it occurred, we've sometimes taken to calling the deal the Boston Red Sox made with the Milwaukee Brewers last week as the "Caleb Durbin trade."

Perhaps we'd better stop doing that, because there could be a second player involved in that deal who makes a real impact on the Red Sox's season. Durbin will start at either second or third base to begin the season, but watch out for Andruw Monasterio as well.

Monasterio, the 28-year-old utility man who put up a 109 OPS+ in 68 games last season, has an opportunity to make the opening day roster due to Romy Gonzalez's injury. Manager Alex Cora even hinted that Monasterio has a very solid chance at doing just that in his Thursday comments.

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What Cora said about Monasterio

Sep 19, 2025; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Milwaukee Brewers second baseman Andruw Monasterio (14) fields a ground ball against the St. Louis Cardinals during the eighth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

During his media availability, Cora called Monasterio "a great athlete" and hinted that there could be more offensive impact in his game than he displayed with the Brewers.

“You see him from afar or whatever, but then you see him here, it’s like, ‘Oh, shoot,’” Cora said, per Christopher Smith of MassLive. “He can move. He’s versatile. He can hit lefties. Now we have to work with him because I think it’s a different mindset offensively, what they do over there to what we do here. I truly believe that there’s more from the three guys (that were in the trade).”

Monasterio owns a career .727 OPS against lefties, and last season, that number jumped to .837 in 50 plate appearances. He's also only hit eight major league home runs to this point, and one naturally wonders if there's more coming, given his solid 5-foot-11, 195-pound frame.

Take the good stats with a grain of salt, because Monasterio also posted OPS figures of .678 and .575 in his first two partial big-league seasons, respectively. But he's also had more major league success to this point than Gonzalez had when he arrived in Boston and started playing more of a specialist role.

We haven't even mentioned Anthony Seigler yet, but if Monasterio becomes a key contributor for the Red Sox at any point this season, that trade will have been well worth the price Boston paid.