With the trade deadline a week away, the Red Sox' wish list keeps growing

Boston Globe

2 days ago

Is this baseball or 'The Bachelor?'
Meanwhile actual games are being played and players sit at their lockers beforehand scrolling through their phones to get the latest news.
The Red Sox need to explore the market like Lewis and Clark before the deadline hits Thursday.
Their focus should be improving the rotation and bullpen and finding a first baseman to at least be part of a platoon. That's obvious.
But a backup catcher also makes sense considering Connor Wong carried a .372 OPS into Friday night's game against the Dodgers. He had one RBI in 101 plate appearances.
Get Starting Point
A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday.
Enter Email
Sign Up
Carlos Narváez has caught 650⅔ innings this season after logging 145⅔ innings in winter ball in Venezuela. He has handled the workload well, but there are still 57 games remaining.
Advertisement
His previous high for a season was 565⅓ innings over 66 minor league games in 2023.
'I feel fine physically,' Narváez said before the game. 'I wanted an opportunity like this.'
Still, the Sox need to be careful not to wear Narváez out.
Then came word that Marcelo Mayer was
Advertisement
'We're gathering information,' manager Alex Cora said. That sounded ominous.
Ceddanne Rafaela started at second base Friday and Cora said that is the plan for as long as Mayer is out.
That puts Jarren Duran in center with Roman Anthony in left field and Masataka Yoshida as the full-time designated hitter.
Prior to Friday, Anthony had played two games in left field at Fenway Park and caught one ball.
Anthony is a good athlete and should be fine out there. The larger point is that the Sox have a lot of moving parts defensively and are already a poor defensive team.
Playing Rafaela at second base is like driving a Maserati to the corner store. He has been the best defensive center fielder in the American League this season and it's not close.
With Rafaela in center, Wilyer Abreu can cheat over a step and cover more ground in right field. It also helps Duran in left field.
Duran was a Gold Glove finalist in center field last season. But there's a reason Rafaela has started 90 games in center this season.
'[Duran] has done it before. We trust him,' Cora said.
Anthony should be playing in the outfield every day. The question is whether Yoshida can give them enough as the DH. He had one RBI in his first nine games since coming off the injured list.
The alternative at second base is David Hamilton, who was recalled on Friday. He has hit .179 in 62 major league games this season.
The Sox also have Vaughn Grissom, who hasn't played a major league game since last season. He has a .791 OPS in 84 games at Worcester but that hasn't resulted in a promotion.
Advertisement
Cora also revealed that Patrick Sandoval hit a bump in his return from Tommy John surgery and was unlikely to pitch in a game this season. His return was always viewed as a potential bonus, not something to be counted on.
Seeing the Dodgers at Fenway sparked memories of the 2018 World Series. The Sox have a lot of work to do to make that even remotely possible.
Peter Abraham can be reached at