Red Sox

“In the end, I thought this was a decision that was best for the Red Sox.”

Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow made a major trade on Saturday, sending Chris Sale and cash considerations to the Atlanta Braves in exchange for infielder Vaughn Grissom.

Sale was penciled in as one of Boston’s primary starters in the rotation, but hasn’t been able to stay healthy for the better part of his Red Sox tenure. Grissom provides a ton of upside as a young second baseman with six years of team control.

“Anytime you trade someone like Sale, it’s obviously a really, really tough baseball decision,” Breslow told reporters via Zoom on Saturday. “In the end, I thought this was a decision that was best for the Red Sox.”

Breslow added that Sale was willing to waive his no-trade clause because it made sense both for Boston in the long term and for Sale’s chances of winning another World Series Championship with a National League contender.

“He would say it was bittersweet because the organization has meant so much to him,” Breslow said. “These decisions are never easy. But, I’m super appreciative of the way that Chris approached it.”

As far as the current Red Sox bullpen, it seems more moves are on the horizon for Breslow and Boston. Breslow specifically noted that the Red Sox have to be prepared to deal young prospects in exchange for improved starting pitching. He even talked (briefly) about Yoshinobu Yamamoto, but reiterated that he wasn’t the only starting prospect Boston is pursuing.

Breslow said Sox need to be ready to deal young prospects to trade for quality, controllable starting pitching.

— Alex Speier (@alexspeier) December 31, 2023

While starting pitching is still Breslow’s priority this offseason, he explained that he’s looking for anything that can improve the team in both the short and long term. Considering Boston’s inconsistencies and shortcomings within the infield, Grissom seems to fit that bill of improvement.

“In Grissom, we saw someone that we felt was a dynamic athlete who could play all over the field and offered a ton of versatility,” Breslow said. “Most likely to settle in at second base, someone with a really strong right-handed bat who’s been an elite performer in the minor leagues.”

Boston views Grissom as an everyday second baseman and believes his bat may get even stronger as he grows. If he continues his current trajectory, he’ll be a nice addition to Triston Casas, Rafael Devers, and Trevor Story in the infield.

Breslow has made a couple of moves so far during his short time in the Red Sox’ front office. Based on his attitude during his Zoom call, it seems more moves are on the horizon.