By Jon VankinShareNewsweek is a Trust Project memberThe Boston Red Sox, it is no secret, are in the market for pitching. Sonny Gray, a 13-year veteran acquired in trade on Tuesday from the St. Louis Cardinals, addresses the need for reliable starting pitching after left-handed ace Garrett Crochet. But the Red Sox may still be looking for a No. 2 starter, capable of following Crochet in the rotation with minimal drop-off — and can start a game in the postseason.
A new, wild trade proposal assembled by MLB.com writer Anthony Castrovince on Thursday would get the Red Sox exactly such a starter, an All-Star who was 13-10 on a team that finished 22 games under .500. To get this ace, five-year veteran right-hander Joe Ryan, The Red Sox would need to give up only one top-15 prospect, plus fan-favorite outfielder Jarren Duran, a speedster who has stolen 91 bases in his five-year career, and was caught only 17 times.
...The key to the seemingly simple, hypothetical trade, however, is the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers. In Castrovince's scenario, the Dodgers pick up Duran to take over left field at Chavez Ravine from Michael Conforto, whose one year in Los Angeles for $17 million was a bust.
Conforto hit for just a .637 OPS and only 83 hits in 418 at-bats, a sorry .199 batting average. Duran last year at age 29, two years younger than Conforto, compiled a .774 OPS, stealing 24 bases in 30 attempts with a league-leading 13 triples for good measure.
But the Twins would receive three of the Dodgers' top-20 prospects including No. 2 overall in the system, Zyhir Hope, who hit 13 home runs with an .804 OPS at the High-A and Double-A levels this year.
More MLB: Red Sox Say Goodbye to $1 Million, 26th-Round Draft Pick Lefty
The only prospect the Red Sox would give up in the trade for Ryan, according to the Castrovince scenario, would be Marcus Phillips, Boston's No. 11 prospect, a right-hander who pitched on Tennessee's College World Series winner in 2024. The Red Sox drafted Phillips in the competitive balance round after the first round this summer.
"Boston’s deal for Sonny Gray ... improved (its) rotation but still leaves them in need of a Dude behind Garrett Crochet," wrote Castrovince. "The Sox get one here in Ryan, who is under control through 2027 and coming off an All-Star season in which he had a 125 ERA+ (25 percent better than league average) in 171 innings."
The Red Sox have been linked to Ryan before, especially at this year's trade deadline. The righty would be an economical acquisition as well. His arbitration salary is estimated by Spotrac at just $6 million next season, and he has a year of team control after that before he becomes a free agent.
"We send Duran to the Dodgers, who might stop short of paying top dollar for Kyle Tucker or Cody Bellinger but could surely stand to shore up their outfield with someone of the 29-year-old Duran’s power-speed combo caliber," wrote the MLB.com analyst.
The Twins would also get Dodgers' No. 6-ranked prospect Jackson Ferris, a lefty pitcher as well an No. 18 overall Chase Harlan, a 19-year-old third-baseman.
The far-fetched trade would serve all three teams, letting Los Angeles upgrade its outfield, getting the Red Sox their co-ace to go with Crochet, and setting the Twins on the road to an accelerated rebuild.
More MLB: Red Sox Trade Idea Would Land Boston $15M Ace for No. 3 Prospect
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