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Ken Rosenthal suggests Triston Casas trade to Mariners for pitching help
"All of these scenarios are the kinds of scenarios that I would imagine — I feel even stronger than that, I would feel pretty certain — that the Red Sox are discussing.”
The future is still bright for Triston Casas.
Even after being sidelined for most of the 2024 season due to injury, the 24-year-old first baseman still has the power and plate discipline to be a force in the heart of the Red Sox’ lineup for years to come.
But if the Red Sox are looking for ways to add pitching this offseason beyond just breaking the bank in free agency, Casas’ high ceiling might be spun into an appealing trade chip for Craig Breslow and Boston’s top brass.
Speaking on “Foul Territory” on Monday, longtime MLB insider Ken Rosenthal tossed out the Mariners as a team that might be interested in plucking Casas out of Boston, especially if it means a young starting pitcher going back to Seattle.
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“What if you could trade him for one of Seattle’s young starters? Seattle needs a first baseman,” Rosenthal said. “They’re not going to spend on Pete Alonso or Christian Walker, in my estimation. Well, here’s Tristan Cass, a minimum-salary guy for another year or two.
“And if you maybe give up a Bryan Woo, or some other young starter — who would be, in my opinion, the most likely one [traded] — well that’s interesting.”
The Mariners have no shortage of high-end young pitching in their rotation between Logan Gilbert, George Kirby, and Woo. Woo, 24, impressed last season in Seattle — sporting a 9-3 record over 22 starts while posting a 2.89 ERA.
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However, Woo did deal with some injury concerns over the summer — including medial elbow inflammation and a hamstring strain. He also underwent an MRI in June that came back “perfectly clean” — but the concerns remain about his ability to log heavy innings.
For Rosenthal, acquiring a pitcher with some risk (but plenty of upside) in Woo would be just one step of retooling a Red Sox rotation short of top talent.
“And then, if you’re the Red Sox, you go out and sign Blake Snell or Max Fried, you do some other things as well, and bingo — you are back in business,” Rosenthal said. “I’m not saying this is going to happen. I’m speculating.
“But at the same time, all of these scenarios are the kinds of scenarios that I would imagine — I feel even stronger than that, I would feel pretty certain — that the Red Sox are discussing.”
This is not the first time that Rosenthal has mentioned Casas as a potential trade chip for Boston — as he mapped out a Casas-to-Seattle deal in The Athletic back in September.
Even with Casas’ age and high potential, the Red Sox have ways to account for his absence in the lineup if they do move him.
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As Rosenthal noted, Boston could trade Casas for pitching and then add a right-handed, power-hitting infielder in free agency like Alex Bregman or Willy Adames.
Both Bregman and Adames can play third base, with Casas’ absence opening the door for Rafael Devers to slot over to first base if needed.
It’s an intriguing possibility for Boston — one that also invites plenty of risk for the Red Sox if Casas can prove in short order that the 2024 campaign was just an injury-impacted fluke.
“I think that the team and the organization should continue to strive for a championship whether I’m in the plans or not,” Casas told The Boston Globe’s Julian McWilliams last month. “I don’t know what the front office has in store for this offseason in terms of restructuring the roster to try to become a playoff team.
“I want to be a part of the plans to make that happen, but if not, and they want to seek an outside source for me to try to bolster the roster, that’s well within their ability.”
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