Like the Red Sox have explored several ways to overhaul their roster this winter, Triston Casas’ name has come up often as a potential trade candidate. On Monday, Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow vehemently claimed those rumors were more smoke than fire.
Throughout December, reports from The Boston Globe, Seattle Times i MLB.com noted that the Red Sox have been more than willing to listen to Casas in talks with other clubs. On December 7, The Globe’s Alex Speier wrote that the Sox had offered Casas to at least one team in an attempt to get pitching help. last week, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand reported that the Red Sox were willing to do so entertain a package of Casas and highly paid designated hitter Masataka Yoshida for Mariners starter Luis Castillo before Boston landed Garrett Crochet and Walker Buehler.
Now, though, it seems Breslow wants to make it clear to Casas that the Red Sox see him as a big part of their roster in 2025.
“I’m not entirely sure where it’s coming from,” Breslow said. “We’re not going to buy Triston. We see him as a guy who can hit in the middle of the lineup for a long time here in Boston. Obviously more power, more strike zone judgment, the ability to get on base , and he’s someone I don’t think we’ve seen at his best. He obviously missed a few months. We’re excited for him to be fully healthy.
“When you have very good young players, I don’t think it’s surprising that other teams ask about them. But I have seen some of the speculation about what agreements may or may not have existed or what may or may not have been proposed. And there was nothing that was close. We certainly don’t buy it.”
Given Boston’s widely reported willingness to listen to the upcoming 25-year-old Casas, it’s possible that Breslow’s claim is true and that the Red Sox were reacting to Casas being called up by other teams rather than actively mentioning your name first. At this point, his status on Boston’s roster looks more secure than it did a month ago with the massive amount of work in the rotation done via the Crochet trade (in which no one on the MLB roster went to the White Sox ) and the signing of Buehler.
Breslow, who identified right-handed pitching and the bullpen as the two most pressing areas of need for Bostonhe also reiterated that the Red Sox planned to keep Rafael Devers at third base barring a drastic change. The club has been linked to free agent Alex Bregman as a possible second base option and Nolan Arenado of St. Louiswhich would almost certainly be in third place if they moved.
“Raffy is our third baseman,” Breslow said. “He’s having a very productive offseason. I saw him a couple of weeks ago. He looks great. He feels great. “We’re very optimistic about what we’re going to get out of him. He talked about coming to Fort Myers earlier this year and really focusing on getting ready to have a big season.
“That said, we’ll be open-minded and creative about how we put together the best roster, but as it stands right now, Raffy is our third baseman.”
- BETTING: Check out our MA Sports Betting Guidewhere you can learn basic terminology, definitions and how to read the odds for those interested in learning how to bet in Massachusetts.