What Red Sox Could Do Next After Acquiring Steven Matz In Trade

The Boston Red Sox finally made their presence known when the team acquired St. Louis Cardinals left-handed reliever Steven Matz in a deal that’s pending medical reviews, according to The Boston Globe‘s Alex Speier.

To acquire Matz, the Red Sox traded first base prospect Blaze Jordan to the Cardinals in the clearest sign that Boston intends to make good on a recent climb into the second spot in the American League Wild Card standings. The addition of Matz gives the Red Sox another left-handed reliever to pair with Brennan Bernardino and an established veteran arm to lengthen the bullpen.

With the bullpen looking deeper and more formidable, Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow is now free to explore upgrading other areas of his team’s roster. A social media post from the New York Post’s Jon Heyman on Wednesday connected the Red Sox to trade interest in Minnesota Twins closer Jhoan Durán. The Philadelphia Phillies were quick to move in and acquired the hard-throwing right-hander in a three-player swap later in the day.

With Durán and Ryan Helsley both traded on Wednesday, the Red Sox will have to explore other options if they remain interested in acquiring another high-leverage bullpen arm. With previous reports connecting the Red Sox to right-handed pitchers such as Joe Ryan and Sandy Alcantara, it remains possible the team could make an even bigger splash and add another top-tier starting pitcher to solidify the rotation.

A more likely course of action would be to trade for a first baseman. While the Red Sox have been identified as a team with interest in Baltimore Orioles All-Star Ryan O’Hearn since early June, a recent article from The Athletic‘s Ken Rosenthal hinted that the team could acquire Yandy Díaz if the Tampa Bay Rays decide to make him available.

That said, the trade deadline always tends to offer up a few surprises each year. With less than a day until this year’s trade frenzy comes to an end, it’s very possible the Red Sox could have something unexpected developing behind the scenes.