despite a surprising start to the 2024 season, the Boston Red Sox can’t escape their position at the center of MLB trade talk. They’ve won five of seven to start the season after a disappointing 2023.
In an April 2 column for Bleacher Report, Zachary D. Rymer speculated on right-handed pitcher Kenley Jansen’s future with the club.
He ranked the 36-year-old as the ninth-best trade chip in the MLB.
“Jansen has never had a truly bad year in 14 seasons as a major leaguer. There have been ups and downs, to be sure, but at no point has he posted a below-average ERA+,” Rymer wrote.
It’s only Jansen’s second season with Boston, but trade talk has been the most consistent nature of his tenure with the club.
Dating back to last season’s trade deadline, up to Spring Training this year, he’s been consistently mentioned as a name to watch.
Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported on February 8 that two West Coast teams were keeping tabs on Jansen.
“The Padres and Dodgers are among candidates for Jansen,” Heyman wrote.
MLB Network’s Jon Morosi added the Philadelphia Phillies into the reported mix on February 8.
Rymer, too, mentioned the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres, in addition to the Baltimore Orioles and Texas Rangers, as teams that would be “potential fits” in his April 2 column.
Would the Red Sox trade a quality pitcher to a division rival? Baltimore has lapped Boston as an club in the AL East, on the rise as one of the best teams in the MLB.
They can always use pitching help and are home tothe best farm system in the league. But no one ever feels good about doing business with a team that benefits two-fold.
