Red Sox Rival Predicted To Trade For All-Star Shortstop
The Boston Red Sox will be looking to win a very competitive American League East, and their rivals will not make it easy.
The Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees and Red Sox all made the postseason last year. The Blue Jays and Red Sox made major changes to their teams, but the Yankees did not. However, that could change before the end of the year. Bleacher Report’s Kerry Miller predicted the Yankees would trade for Washington Nationals All-Star shortstop CJ Abrams.
The Yankees adding an All-Star shortstop would certainly make the AL East even tougher. The Yankees won 94 games last season, tied for the most in the AL. They did that despite Anthony Volpe playing poorly all season. The Nationals are rebuilding and are far from being contenders. Trading Abrams could be realistic for them.
“Short of knowing what injury news will look like in early August, though, the Yankees may make the most sense here,” Miller wrote on Friday. “Primary 2B Jazz Chisholm Jr. has plans of joining the 50/50 club, but he is often injured, and it’s his final season before free agency. Primary SS Anthony Volpe is recovering from labrum surgery and is probably entering a make-or-break year after three straight seasons with an OPS of around .660. Even with top prospect George Lombard Jr. possibly ready to make his MLB debut at some point this season, the Bronx Bombers might be on the hunt for some middle infield help this summer.”
Abrams slashed .257/.315/.433 with 19 home runs last season. He was an All-Star in 2024 and is under club control through 2028. He is a young star who could thrive at Yankee Stadium specifically. Nationals Park is a below-average venue for left-handed hitters to hit home runs over the last three years. Meanwhile, Yankee Stadium clocks in as the fifth-best venue for left-handed hitters to hit homers, per Baseball Savant.
Defensively, Abrams is not a great shortstop. However, if the bar to earn the job in New York is Anthony Volpe, Abrams’ defense would not be a huge concern. Volpe was a terrible defender last season, but Abrams is a far better hitter.
Adding his bat to a lineup that already includes Aaron Judge, Jazz Chisholm Jr., Giancarlo Stanton and Cody Bellinger would make things tough in the AL East.
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