The Boston Red Sox are currently on a roll. They have won six consecutive games and drawn even with the Seattle Mariners for the third American League Wild Card spot.
Boston also has come to within 5 1/2 games of the Toronto Blue Jays for first place in the AL East. What they’ll do at the trade deadline isn’t quite clear, but they could be in the market for a few upgrades.
Their bullpen is their biggest achilles heel. Aside from Aroldis Chapman, their relievers are struggling with walks.
Former Red Sox reliever Chris Martin was recently on The Athletic’s big board of the Top 40 trade candidates. Boston was listed as a potential fit.
“Martin is 39, but the long-underrated setup man has shown no signs of slowing down. His ability to relentlessly pound the zone without giving up hard contact is rare, and he’d be an ideal plug-and-play rental for almost any contender’s bullpen.”
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Martin was with the Red Sox in 2023 and 2024. In his first year in Boston, he posted a 1.05 ERA in 55 appearances.
2024 was no exception, as he posted a 3.45 ERA in 45 appearances. He could certainly be of use to Boston in the second half of the season.
With the Texas Rangers, Martin is 0-5 but has posted a 2.35 ERA this season. While rental relievers never come cheap, Boston has the prospects to pull off a deal such as this.
The 39-year-old right-hander could be the ideal setup man for Chapman towards the end of games, and could give Boston a much better chance to secure a postseason spot this coming October.
It will be interesting to see how Boston navigates the deadline.
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