Mookie Betts, understandably, seems hellbent on testing free agency when the time comes. So, would that prompt the Boston Red Sox to trade him at some point in order to avoid losing him for nothing?
Sam Kennedy offered his take.
With a shockingly quiet trade deadline now behind the Red Sox, it appears they are set on trying to reach the playoffs with their current group. It was unclear in the weeks leading up to the deadline if the Red Sox planned on being buyers or sellers, leading some to wonder if they’d do the borderline unfathomable: trading Betts.
Kennedy, the team’s president and CEO, appeared on WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show” on Thursday morning, and was asked if there ever were internal discussions about moving the star outfielder.
“No specific discussions about Mookie Betts or any other player. Just a general discussion, which I think is healthy,” Kennedy said. “About a week before the deadline, ownership and Dave (Dombrowski) and the team, we sit down and just kind of go through, ‘Alright, what are things looking like?’ And I think it’s responsible for teams in our position that have the resources, we have great assets, we have great scouting and player development (to do that). We said to ourselves, ‘Let’s see what’s out there on the market and would there be a willingness to listen to any deal?’ And the honest answer to that is yes. I think it would be irresponsible to not at least listen. Were there any substantive discussions or actually any discussions that got to any type of ownership level on any of our more elite players? No, no there were not.”
It’s worth keeping in mind that Kennedy has said numerous times that the team and its ownership are committed to trying to keep Betts long term, and he reiterated this notion in Thursday’s interview. Plus, Kennedy’s remarks are in line with pretty much any team that would find themselves in the Red Sox’s situation. That said, it’s clear this team has the talent to win, so it should come as little surprise that the front office is all in.
