WIlyer Abreu and Ceddane Rafaela Haven't Been Much Involved in Red Sox Trade Talks
The Boston Red Sox have a great problem: they have too many outfielders. Top prospect Roman Anthony has a spot secured, while Ceddane Rafaela, Wilyer Abreu, Jarren Duran, Rob Refsnyder, and Masataka Yoshida all can start too.
With the Red Sox having such a deep outfield, it's no surprise that teams are inquiring about the availability of their outfielders. But, while Duran has drawn significant trade interest, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic gave an update on the potential of trading either Rafaela or Abreu.
"While Anthony is considered all but untouchable," McCaffrey writes, "Abreu and Rafaela could be trade pieces, but there hasn't been as much talk about either of them."
Anthony's status isn't a surprise. But, with neither Abreu nor Rafaela receiving interest from teams like Duran has, it's an interesting update.
Despite both Abreu and Rafaela being appealing trade targets, neither can compare to the interest in Duran.
Teams aren't making as strong of an effort to land either over Duran, as the baseball world is focused on Duran in a trade, not any of the other Red Sox outfielders.
Rafaela has been on fire recently. During the Red Sox's ten-game winning streak, the center fielder has a .421 batting average with a 1.410 OPS. In that span, he has 16 hits, ten runs scored, six doubles, five home runs, and 15 RBIs.
His hot streak has dramatically improved his numbers, and he's nearly surpassed his previous career highs in doubles and home runs. In 92 games, he has 4.0 WAR, compared to his 2024, where in 152 games he had 2.8 WAR.
Abreu, on the other hand, while not nearly as hot as Rafaela, has been solid this season. In 83 games, he has 69 hits, 41 runs scored, 11 doubles, 18 home runs, 52 RBIs, and a .822 OPS. It's the second-best mark among outfielders on the team behind Refsnyder's .844 OPS in 106 at-bats.
Boston has some of the best outfielders in baseball, and if they play up to their potential, they could be the best outfield in the game. But, with the possibility of one of those outfielders on the move, it seems likely it's Duran and not one of Rafaela or Abreu.
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 17, 2025, where it first appeared.
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