How Red Sox's Sonny Gray Trade Affects Jarren Duran, Wilyer Abreu: Insider

Every trade has an impact on players up and down the 40-man roster, and for the Boston Red Sox, there will be wide-ranging ramifications for acquiring Sonny Gray.

The three-time All-Star Gray came over from the St. Louis Cardinals in a trade that was finalized on Tuesday, as Boston parted ways with Richard Fitts, Brandon Clarke, and a player to be named later. Gray's arrival will impact the playing time situations of many of the pitchers, but what about Boston's position players?

It's often been speculated, rumored, or outright assumed that either left fielder Jarren Duran or right fielder Wilyer Abreu will be traded by the end of the offseason. Does Boston's acquisition of Gray have a domino effect for those two?

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Red Sox could hang onto Duran, Abreu?

On Tuesday, Ian Browne of MLB.com postulated that because the Red Sox had added a viable playoff starting pitcher, Duran and Abreu could have a higher chance of sticking around for the foreseeable future.

"While rumors had persisted that the Sox could have to deal from their logjam of talented outfielders to get a starting pitcher, this transaction allowed Boston to hold on to players like Jarren Duran and Wilyer Abreu," wrote Browne.

"It remains to be seen if the Sox still move an outfielder at some point, though chief baseball officer Craig Breslow and manager Alex Cora have both said the DH spot could be useful in moving players around and getting everyone enough at-bats."

Since we're often in the business of highlighting offseason predictions, we'll make one here: It's still hard to envision Breslow leaving value on the table when either Duran or Abreu could fetch a real return. We just saw Brandon Nimmo's trade value for the New York Mets, and both Red Sox outfielders have much more team-friendly contracts.

The primary purpose of trading Duran or Abreu wouldn't be to land a starting pitcher, it's a more all-encompassing goal. Deal from the surplus you have to make your organization more well-rounded, be it a starting pitcher or a position player who could contribute in the near future.

But there are only so many blockbuster trades a team can make in one offseason, so with one on the board, there's absolutely a chance the Red Sox could roll into opening day with all of their current outfielders still around.

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