Sunday Morning Coffee Thoughts

Good morning my friends, I have been enjoying a fabulous few days of perfect weather here in Southern Maine. It’s the last weekend in July and summer seems to be screaming by. This week I have some final thoughts on the 15 game winning streak and the marvel it was to witness. I also have some trade deadline thoughts with respect to the Red Sox and the league in general. So as is our honored tradition on Sunday Mornings, go to the kitchen cabinet. Check way in the back and locate that Royce Clayton mug and dust it off. Next, fill it to the brim with the caffeine beverage of your choosing. Finally, relax in the most comfortable chair available to you while you take in my latest missive.

Red Sox

The Streak

Winning fifteen games in a row is no small accomplishment. I really hope the fans in Red Sox Nation truly appreciate what they witnessed during that time. Situations like this are part of team and baseball history and should always be looked at fondly and with respect to the players of the team involved.

Would it have been nice to see them break the record of the 1946 Red Sox? Sure! However, that team was led by none other than Ted Williams and had Pesky, Doerr and Dom DiMaggio. They compiled a record of 104-50-2! It was a special team and it was 80 years ago! Please appreciate what you witnessed as you can see it really doesn’t happen that often. Plus, it made the 2026 team the talk of baseball and sports in general! Could you have imagined that in early June? Not me! In the words of Ned Martin who called Red Sox games for over 30 years on radio and TV “Mercy!”

The 2026 Trade Deadline (My ideas on what the Sox should try to do)

After propelling themselves back into the postseason discussion over that last few weeks, the direction in terms of buying or selling has swung over from a moderate sell to a definite buy. There are obvious needs and subtle ones that will dictate the quantity and aggressiveness of any trade scenario. One mitigating factor is that the teams which are truly out of contention and have some valuable assets to trade are fewer than there have been in the past. (Think Mets, Rockies, A’s, Giants, Angels and Royals)

Let’s take a look at the needs of this team as I see them and the potential solutions at the deadline:

1. Bullpen help. Yes, every contender wants the same. There are some nice names out there in the persons of Miller (SD), Minter, Weaver, Raley and Brazoban (all of the NYM). My thoughts are that the Sox would be better served bringing two old friends back to Fenway. Brennan Bernardino (COL) and John Schreiber (KC) are used to pitching in Boston and both are reliable options for this club. It’s really nice to not have to talk about shipping Chapman and/or Whitlock out of town!

2. A leadoff hitter. It’s been a revolving door at the top of this lineup. You name it, Tracy and Cora before him have tried it. Duran would be an obvious choice if he could keep it together, but right now he’s played his way out of consideration. My solution is to trade for Luis Arraez. The man can hit! He gets on base! He will never be considered a gold glove candidate at second but “serviceable” works. My theory here is that they can get by with a rolling cast at shortstop (Cheng, Monasterio, Gonzalez and Sogard). I don’t expect Mayer to be back before September, there is no need to rush Arias. Story should truly be an after thought at this point. Luis Arraez is the solution to the problem.

3. Another power bat in the lineup (right handed preferred). Old news for sure! There are options that fall into the categories of dreams and pipe dreams.

   1. Pipe Dreams

      1. Yordan Alvarez would be at the top of my list but any deal for him is something for the offseason.

      2. Rob Bradford (WEEI) has suggested going after Bobby Witt Jr. I love the idea, but this would cost you both MLB talent and high prospect capital. Again another offseason transaction (less likely than Alvarez).

   2. Dreams

      1. The latest thinking around the situation by Red Sox Twitter has focused on three catchers Shea Langeliers (A’s), Ryan Jeffers (MIN) and Hunter Goodman (COL). Langeliers is the better defensive catcher. In terms of power, Langeliers and Goodman are home run threats, but Jeffers has decent power. Acquiring any of these players would cost, but it would boost the offensive output of the position tremendously. Langeliers is the obvious choice, with Goodman a close second, but I think Jeffers might be more realistic.

      2. Let’s tackle the shortstop dream. Names floated so far are CJ Abrams, Zack Neto, Jeremy Pena and Francisco Lindor. Abrams and Neto can hit, but both are not top tier defenders. If the Mets wanted to unload Lindor (a change of scenery candidate) for a salary dump (Story and Player X for Lindor?) Neto probably won’t be traded because Angels owner Arte Moreno is pathetic. Pena would be a rental as he is a Boras client, not a bad option but for what price?

      3. A couple of off the wall ideas for a bat? George Springer of the Blue Jays, though I don’t see that kind of in division trade likely. Spencer Steer of the Reds, he has power and has some versatility.

      4. The solution: I see them making a run for one of the three catchers and probably acquiring Jeffers.

4. Starting Pitching: Before you start screaming at the wall there are some things you should consider.

   1. Crochet won’t be back until September at the earliest. If he’s ok and performs well you have a very dependable arrow in your quiver.

   2. Patrick Sandoval is your insurance policy and will be nursed along to help save the arms of Tolle, Bennett and Early (when he comes back). More on that later.

   3. Sonny Gray and Ranger Suarez are going to lead the staff down the stretch.

   4. A history lesson. In 2024 Kutter Crawford (183.2), Tanner Houck (178.2) and Brayan Bello (162.1) led the team in innings pitched. All three of them reached career highs in terms of innings. Crawford got hurt and hasn’t pitched since. Houck had surgery last season and has yet to pitch this season. Brayan Bello is a story of his own! The point is that they are going to watch the innings totals for all three of these guys (Tolle, Early and Bennett) and try to preserve them when they can.

   5. If you also consider that Tanner Houck and Oviedo could also come back in late August it provides enough depth to allow for a mix and match scenario with Tolle, Early, Bennett. Not optimal but potentially workable.

   6. Enter the opportunity for a veteran starter acquisition. My solution is another reunion candidate in the person of Michael Wacha. He has a stat line for 2026 of: 5-7 W/L, 3.66 ERA, 20G/20 GS, 125.1 IP, 101 SO, 36 BB, 1.173 WHIP. He would be another excellent insurance policy for this team. Plus he is a right handed starter on a team that is left handed starter dominant.

You will notice I have not mentioned any current members of the 40 man roster or prospect capital that might be used to consummate any deal. Every potential trading partner has different needs. So the cast of characters involved and combinations of the same are infinite.

I am not Craig Breslow or John Henry. I don’t make the decisions. I only can provide what I think are educated guesses with respect to moves that I would consider making. These are my opinions and they are as valid as yours or any of your friends. I’m just a boomer fan, who has seen a lot of baseball, with some extra time on his hands and a long list of memories from trade deadlines past.

Final important safety tip. Breslow NEVER tips his hand! Reports and rumors surround potential moves are just that! Let’s enjoy the chaos over the next week until we see or hear the words “Jeff Passan reports that the Boston Red Sox have acquired……….”!

THE “OG’S” IDLE THOUGHTS OF THE WEEK

• It’s Patriots training camp time. I expect this team to have a tough time repeating last year’s accomplishments.

• The Patriots will have three joint practice sessions this summer. The first will be with the Colts on August 11th before their first preseason game on August 13th against Indianapolis. The final two will be against the Eagles the following week on August 19th and 20th ahead of their schedule preseason game on Saturday the 22nd against Philadelphia.

• Speaking of the Eagles and Patriots….. I wonder who the first combatants will be in the obligatory scrimmage dust up?

• LeBron to the 76’ers……. meh!

• A month late, but Franklin Arias is finally in AAA Worcester. Waiting to see him flourish there!

• Welcome to the National Baseball Hall of Fame Andruw Jones, Carlos Beltran and Jeff Kent!

• Don’t look now but the Marlins have dropped 11 in a row!

That’s it for this week! Thanks for helping me in my quest to make baseball and sports in general fun again!

Until Next Week: Be Good! Be Safe! Be You!