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Red Sox make 4 trades, cut Nathaniel Lowe on busy day for Craig Breslow
The Red Sox reshuffled portions of their bullpen on Tuesday afternoon.
Craig Breslow and the Red Sox’ top brass were busy on Tuesday — with Boston overhauling a hefty portion of its roster.
In total, the Red Sox reeled off four trades, designated two players for assignment, and also added three pitching prospects to their 40-man roster.
Here’s a recap of all of the roster moves that the Red Sox pulled off on Tuesday:
Boston sends Luis Guerrero to Rays in exchange for Tristan Gray
The Red Sox started their flurry of moves on Tuesday by trading righty reliever Luis Guerrero to the Rays in exchange for 29-year-old infielder Tristan Gray.
Gray appeared in 30 games for Tampa in 2025, batting .231 with three home runs, five doubles, and nine RBI. He has also played for both the Athletics and Marlins in his big-league career. Gray played all across the infield in 2025, with most of his reps coming at second base.
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In Gray, the Red Sox should have another depth option at the utility position alongside other options like David Hamilton, Nick Sogard and Nate Eaton.
Guerrero posted a 2.63 ERA across 22 relief appearances over the last two seasons, but was sidelined for most of the 2025 campaign due to an elbow injury.
Red Sox cut Lowe, Winckowski
In order to make room on the 40-man roster for both Gray and an influx of new pitchers, the Red Sox announced on Tuesday that first baseman Nathaniel Lowe and righty Josh Winckowski were designated for assignment.
Lowe started all three postseason games for Boston and was a dependable stopgap option at first base for the Red Sox after the team signed him in August. In 153 games between the Nationals and Red Sox in 2025, Lowe hit .228 with 18 home runs and 84 RBI.
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A second-year arbitration-eligible player, Lowe was going to be due a pay bump from the $10.3 million salary he commanded in 2025. Given that the Red Sox were already looking to upgrade first base this offseason, the writing was on the wall that Boston was going to move Lowe instead of paying him that higher salary.
Winckowski has been a regular option in Boston’s bullpen since the Red Sox acquired him as part of the 2021 trade that shipped Andrew Benintendi to the Royals. Over his last four seasons, Winckowski appeared in 121 games for Boston — sporting a 4.20 ERA.
After a breakout 2023 season in Boston (2.88 ERA in 60 outings), Winckowski struggled to find his footing with the Red Sox over the last two seasons — ultimately logging just 11.2 innings of work in 2025 while dealing with a nagging elbow injury.
Red Sox deal Bernardino to the Rockies
The Red Sox continued to reshuffle their bullpen by sending lefty Brennan Bernardino to the Rockies in exchange for utility man Braiden Ward.
Ward, 26, could be a useful tool for the Red Sox given his proficiency at stealing bases. Even though the infielder/outfielder has yet to make his big-league debut, he did steal 57-of-64 bases in 2025 while playing for both Double-A Hartford and Triple-A Albuquerque.
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He ended the year on a high note with Albuquerque, batting .331 over his final 44 games of the season.
The 33-year-old Bernardino was a useful bullpen arm for Boston over the last three seasons, sporting a 3.14 ERA over 55 appearances during the 2025 campaign.
Boston trades Chris Murphy to Chicago
After plucking a southpaw from the White Sox last December in a blockbuster deal involving Garrett Crochet, the Red Sox returned the favor on Tuesday.
Well, sort of.
Lefty Chris Murphy is no Crochet, but the Red Sox still traded the solid reliever to Chicago on Tuesday in exchange for minor-league catcher Ronny Hernandez.
After returning from Tommy John surgery, Murphy showcased some potential in 2025 — sporting a 3.12 ERA across 34.2 innings of work. Hernandez, 21, has spent the last two years playing for the White Sox’s Single-A affiliate, batting .251 with four home runs and 12 doubles across 82 games last season.
Boston picks up power-hitting catcher from Mariners
Hernandez was not the only catcher that the Red Sox added to their depth chart on Tuesday, as Boston acquired Mariners prospect Luke Heyman in exchange for minor-league pitcher Alex Hoppe.
Heyman has not appeared in any pro baseball games so far, as he was taken by Seattle in the 14th round of the 2025 MLB Draft out of the University of Florida and was sidelined in late summer due a fractured forearm.
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In 49 games with Florida this past season, Heyman batted .301 with 13 home runs and 44 RBI before that arm injury shortened his collegiate career.
Hoppe, 26, sported a 4.55 ERA in 44 appearances between Double-A Portland and Triple-A Worcester this past summer.
Boston adds three pitchers to 40-man roster
Beyond overhauling a significant portion of their bullpen, the Red Sox added David Sandlin, Shane Drohan and Tyler Uberstine to their 40-man roster — just ahead of Tuesday’s Rule 5 Draft protection deadline.
Sandlin, a hard-throwing righty, labored after making the jump up to Triple-A Worcester in July — posting a 7.61 ERA across 15 appearances for the WooSox.
Drohan, 26, was a strong starter for the WooSox this past season — going 5-1 with a 2.27 ERA over 11 starts. In his 47.2 innings of work, Drohan struck out 67 batters.
Uberstine, 26, spent time with both Double-A Portland and Triple-A Worcester this past season — going 6-3 with a 3.56 ERA in 19 appearances (15 starts).
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