The Arizona Diamondbacks will almost certainly be one of the biggest sellers at the trade deadline. Arizona has suffered quite a few injuries, and it’s knocked the team out of a potential postseason run.
The Diamondbacks have a lot of potential trade chips that they could move, including the hottest name on the market, Eugenio Suárez. Besides him, the Diamondbacks have Josh Naylor and a handful of talented pitchers who could be traded in the coming weeks.
ESPN’s Jeff Passan recently suggested there was a 70 percent chance the Diamondbacks would trade starting pitcher Merrill Kelly this year and he listed the Boston Red Sox as a best fit in a potential big trade.
“Kelly doesn’t have big raw stuff, having posted the second-lowest average fastball velocity (92.0) among pitchers with 115 innings pitched this season,” Passan wrote. “His changeup is his best pitch by a wide margin, and he gets by with location and off-speed stuff. He was a stalwart in the Diamondbacks’ run to the 2023 World Series, striking out 28 in 24 innings with a 2.25 ERA.”
The Red Sox need to add a starting pitcher at the deadline despite a recent surge from Brayan Bello and Lucas Giolito. If Boston targets Kelly, there’s a good chance it wouldn’t have to give up a king’s ransom to land him.
Kelly sits on an expiring contract and likely wouldn’t be looked at as a long-term solution in any trade. He’d be great for the next few months, but Boston likely isn’t going to look to re-sign him if it lands him in a deal.
Either way, this idea makes a lot of sense. The Red Sox need pitching and a deal for Kelly would give them what they need.
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