'We're a very dangerous team': What all this winning means for the Red Sox's trade deadline plans

Just implicit a period ago, the Boston Red Sox traded Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants successful a blockbuster deal that sent shockwaves done the industry. At the clip of the trade, the Red Sox were conscionable a crippled implicit .500. They went 3-7 successful their archetypal 10 games without Devers and looked to beryllium fading retired of contention.

As the squad fell successful the standings, rumors began to circulate that the slugging designated hitter wouldn't beryllium the lone prima traded retired of Boston. But a 10-game triumph streak earlier the All-Star interruption has vaulted the Red Sox into the heavy of the playoff contention and provided immoderate clarity astir their commercialized deadline plans.

"Throughout the full year, we thought we had a truly bully team," adjunct GM Paul Toboni told ESPN implicit the weekend. "We were benignant of waiting for it to click. That streak reconfirmed the thought that we had a bully team."

Boston doesn't person a batch of expiring contracts, truthful adjacent without the triumph streak, a implicit teardown was unlikely. Still, trading immoderate of its outfield extent was a possibility. The Red Sox fertile successful the apical 10 successful OPS successful close field, halfway tract and near tract acknowledgment to Jarren Duran, Roman Anthony, Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu.

With that radical helping the Red Sox clasp an American League wild-card spot, the beforehand bureau is apt to adhd pitching, according to sources acquainted with their situation, portion retaining the abundance of outfielders unless the nine is blown distant with an connection successful the adjacent 10 days.

"Having a surplus of bully players isn't a atrocious thing," Toboni said. "The high-end extent is simply a truly bully thing. It's not similar we're anxious to determination distant from that."

With their outfield concern apt to beryllium addressed successful the offseason, the Red Sox person winning connected their minds. A young core, highlighted by the accomplishment of Anthony and infielder Marcelo Mayer, has had immoderate clip to set to the majors, leaving the team's veterans excited astir the coming months.

"These guys person been present for a fewer months now," Red Sox 3rd baseman Alex Bregman said. "We're starting to larn who we are arsenic a group. The adjustments are being made quicker astatine this clip of the year. It didn't commencement retired that way, but guys are wanting to larn and get better. You tin spot that successful our maturation this year."

Bregman watched intimately portion helium was retired of the lineup due to the fact that of a quad wounded helium sustained astatine the extremity of May. He has seen what winning shot looks similar during his clip successful Houston. It has taken the young Red Sox immoderate clip to get there.

"We're a precise unsafe squad now, particularly erstwhile we're prepared and executing," Bregman said. "We've played bully for a portion now.

"People volition accidental this is simply a blistery streak, but I judge this is who we are."

As the calendar inches toward August, that's the sentiment passim the clubhouse, wherever the veterans who person been done the uncertainty of commercialized play are relieved to walk the adjacent 2 weeks without commercialized chatter.

"The tally we went connected earlier the All-Star break, it was good. We needed thing similar that to get america backmost successful the mix, reconstruct immoderate confidence," starting pitcher Lucas Giolito said. "Right now, staying successful the contiguous is important, but I don't deliberation we person guys successful this country excessively disquieted they're going to get dealt oregon thing anymore."

Two players who were brought successful implicit the offseason mightiness beryllium the astir relieved.

All-Star person Aroldis Chapman, who has a 1.18 ERA and 17 saves, could person been 1 of Boston's astir sought-after deadline commercialized candidates had the beforehand bureau elected to woody him.

When asked astir perchance being moved, the 37-year-old, who is playing for his seventh large league club, smiled arsenic helium responded done his interpreter: "The squad is successful bully shape."

Fellow Boston pitcher Walker Buehler added: "It's astir apt bully timing to hopefully propulsion the beforehand bureau to spell retired and bargain and assistance america marque a run. We did our portion astatine the extremity of the archetypal fractional there. I privation to enactment present and beryllium portion of it. Don't privation to beryllium connected the incorrect broadside of a trade."

Though they mightiness person done capable to person the beforehand bureau to instrumentality with the existent veterans, the Red Sox person immoderate of their toughest enactment up of them. According to ESPN Research, they person the hardest remaining docket for the remainder of the period and sixth hardest for the remainder of the season, but manager Alex Cora isn't funny successful looking astatine the agelong tally -- oregon what Boston's archetypal postseason berth since 2021 would mean.

Instead, helium believes that if the players tin support attacking each day, the remainder volition instrumentality attraction of itself.

"I promised myself I'm going to enactment successful the moment," Cora said. "It doesn't bash the radical immoderate bully to commencement talking astir that. We person to triumph games. It's not to enactment unit connected the beforehand bureau oregon ownership. It's what we request to bash for america to play successful October."

Opposing teams are asking for "outrageous returns" for pitching, according to league sources, but if the asking prices go much tenable person to the deadline, expect the Red Sox to beryllium involved. Until then, they are focused connected riding their July momentum portion navigating a pugnacious schedule.

"Time to support it locked in," Giolito said. "We'll beryllium welcoming immoderate assistance comes."