The Red Sox called up their top prospect and swept the Yankees. Then they made a stunning trade
The week began with Boston calling up top prospect Roman Anthony. It ended with the Red Sox trading slugger Rafael Devers. In between, they swept the rival Yankees.
What's next for this team is anyone's guess.
Boston took two of three from the second-place Rays and then swept the first-place Yankees to pull a game above .500. The Red Sox are 9-17 in one-run games, but they won three of those in a row against Tampa Bay and New York.
All of that seemed to signal a potential turning point for a team that's struggled to sustain success since trading Mookie Betts after the 2019 season. But now the post-Betts era has become the post-Devers era.
It appeared Devers would be a franchise cornerstone for years to come after the Red Sox signed him to a 10-year contract in 2023. Now he's been sent to San Francisco following a tumultuous start to this season. When the Red Sox added Alex Bregman, it opened a new can of worms over where Devers would play, and his relationship with the team went south.
So Boston moves forward — with Devers gone and Bregman and fellow infielder Tristan Casas on the injured list. The Red Sox scored at least eight runs in four of five games from June 4-9. Then they held opponents to one run or fewer in three of their next five.
Anthony is baseball's top-ranked prospect according to MLB Pipeline. Boston drafted him with the 79th pick in 2022, and the 21-year-old outfielder had a .914 OPS at Triple-A Worcester when called up.
He's 1 for 17 at the plate so far. Now he might be under even more pressure — both this year and in the future. Boston has just one winning season since trading Betts to the Dodgers.
Next in line?
MLB Pipeline's No. 2 prospect is Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Bubba Chandler, who was drafted 72nd in 2021. He's 2-1 with a 2.63 ERA in 13 starts this year at Triple-A Indianapolis.
The Pirates, of course, already have one outstanding young pitcher in Paul Skenes, and even he hasn't been able to prevent them from falling 15 games under .500. Pittsburgh ranks dead last in the majors with 3.18 runs per game.
Excitement about Chandler's future? Sure. Can he fix what's holding the Pirates back? Perhaps not.
Trivia time
Devers began his career in 2017. Since then, he leads the Red Sox with 215 home runs. Betts is still fourth on that list with 85, even though that only includes three of his seasons in Boston.
Who are the two players between Devers and Betts on that list?
Line of the week
Spencer Strider struck out 13 in six scoreless innings Saturday in Atlanta's 4-1 victory over Colorado. The Braves could desperately use some positive signs from Strider, who is 1-5 with a 4.35 ERA. Atlanta took two of three from the Rockies but is still eight games under .500.
Comeback of the week
The Arizona Diamondbacks scored five runs in the bottom of the ninth to beat San Diego 8-7 on Saturday night. Geraldo Perdomo's three-run triple tied the game with one out, and then Josh Naylor scored Perdomo with a grounder.
J.D. Martinez, with 130 homers for the Red Sox since then, and Xander Bogaerts with 115.
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