Red Sox, Dodgers, Twins 'Ridiculous' Mock Trade Is Crazy Enough To Work

The Boston Red Sox have gotten one trade done already this offseason. Could there be more on the way?

If so, the most obvious way forward would be trading from the team's surplus of talented outfielders. Jarren Duran and Wilyer Abreu have been the two outfielders in the rumors the most. The Kansas City Royals are a team that has been linked to Duran, but the asking price reportedly is "too high" right now.

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Should the Red Sox make a trade?

The Red Sox have made a trade and there have been a few big moves -- like the Toronto Blue Jays reportedly signing Dylan Cease -- but it's still early. The Winter Meetings will begin on Dec. 7 and there are a lot of moves still to be made. In response, MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince pitched seven "ridiculous" mock trades and one included Boston and was just wild enough to make sense.

"Dodgers get: OF Jarren Duran," Castrovince wrote. "Red Sox get: RHP Joe Ryan. Twins get: OF Zyhir Hope (Dodgers’ No. 2 prospect), LHP Jackson Ferris (Dodgers’ No. 6 prospect), 3B Chase Harlan (Dodgers’ No. 18 prospect), RHP Marcus Phillips (Red Sox’s No. 11 prospect). Well, if we’re going to design a rebuilding plan for the Twins, we might as well keep going. This trade reunites the three teams that conspired on the dual 2020 deals that ultimately brought Mookie Betts to the Dodgers.

"This deal wouldn’t be as big a blockbuster as that one, but it’s still a big one. I had this fake trade sketched out prior to Boston’s deal for Sonny Gray – a trade that improved their rotation but still leaves them in need of a Dude behind Garrett Crochet. The Sox get one here in Ryan, who is under control through 2027 and coming off an All-Star season in which he had a 125 ERA+ (25 percent better than league average) in 171 innings."

If the Red Sox are going to make another trade, this is the exact type they should consider. It would be unfortunate to lose Duran, but in this scenario, they would get a cost-controlled All-Star-level pitcher to pair with Garrett Crochet, Sonny Gray, and Brayan Bello.

WEEI's Rob Bradford noted that some within the organization think Gray and Ryan had comparable 2025 seasons. Imagine two of them plus Crochet and Bello? Phillips is the team's No. 11 prospect, but if they were to land Ryan by essentially giving up Duran and a mid-level prospect, that would be an absolute win.

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