Red Sox Fans Were Duped Into Thinking They Traded For Prized Starting Pitcher Joe Ryan Yesterday, But Actually Ended Up Having One Of The Worst Deadlines Of Any Team
After trading away Rafael Devers in June, GM Craig Breslow had several quotes about how that wasn't a signal that the team was waving the white flag and giving up on 2025. He truly believed Devers departure was addition by subtraction and would benefit the team in the immediate and the future. With Devers' money off the books, Breslow talked about the trade deadline as a moment where the team can add on and really situate themselves well for an October run.
“We’re still looking at the trade deadline as an opportunity to bolster the team. We want to add to this team and we want to improve our chances down the stretch. We believe in this team.”
“This is in no way signifying a waving of the white flag on 2025. We are as committed as we were six months ago to putting a winning team on the field, to competing for the division and making a deep postseason run.”
To the Red Sox players credit, they've played very well since the Devers trade, having gone 22-15 since the trade while currently holding a wild card spot, and still within striking distance of the division. It hasn't necessarily been about the offense, but more the pitching as a whole getting their act together. Still, when you look at their rotation, after Crochet there isn't a true number two to be found. That was the clear objective for this deadline if you were a Red Sox fan. Go get a Merrill Kelly, Joe Ryan, Mackenzie Gore or one of Sandy Alcantara/Edward Cabrera. You owe it to your fans and the players to be ultra aggressive given the fact that you shockingly shipped off the franchise player a month ago and the team has been playing well.
Well, as the deadline came and went all Boston came up with was Dustin May (4.85 ERA) and now converted reliever Steven Matz. That's it. Your dream of Joe Ryan? Well, you got teased real good in the final minutes leading up to the deadline.
I don't know why that got posted on Yahoo's official twitter, but it's hilarious. A few other accounts ran with it too, meanwhile the sides were apparently not close. Rosenthal called their talks "feeble at best."
I don't get it. You aggressively push to trade away your franchise player without seeking a good return, the team responds by playing better, and you choose to do virtually nothing at the deadline when you very much have a shot to get into October and make a run. Joe Ryan, by the way, is under cheap team control for two additional years following this season. He's the ideal Red Sox target and they didn't care enough to make a real push for him. Would he have cost a large haul? Sure, but to get a guy of that caliber who can greatly improve your team it's gotta hurt. You need to overpay at the deadline if you're playing at the top of the market. Breslow just didn't wanna do it. On top of that, Sox fans have to hear this bullshit.
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I honestly don't even know what that means. It's like when Michael Scott says sometimes he just starts a sentence and doesn't know where it's going to end up. That's two deadlines now for Breslow and two whiffs. Is Boston's season over? By no means, just look how they've played of late. But the Blue Jays, Yankees, Rangers Mariners, and Astros all got better yesterday while Boston stayed pat. Instead the Sox join the ranks of the Pirates, Cubs, and Braves as teams who really botched the deadline. As a hater of this team I'm thrilled because Joe Ryan or any legit starting pitcher would have been bad news for the Yankees. Instead they opted to trade away one of the pieces they got back for Devers in exchange for a rental arm that doesn't move the needle in the slightest. Please extend Breslow right away.