Red Sox Rumors: The Athletics interested in Andrew Benintendi?
The Red Sox offseason has been relatively quiet this winter with the exception of a few moves. On Saturday, the Red Sox re-signed left-hander Martin Perez to a one-year deal. The move still leaves Boston with a need in their flawed rotation.
Rival executive familiar with Red Sox thinking said he would be “shocked” if Andrew Benintendi wasn’t traded before the end of the weekend.
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) January 13, 2021
This past week, the Red Sox have reportedly been entertaining trade offers for Andrew Benintendi. The fan favorite is coming off a horrendous 2020 campaign where he played only 14 games. His injury riddled season has left people wondering what’s really wrong with the former No. 7 overall draft pick.
Boston’s chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom has taken a methodical approach to building his roster. While he has added a few names through free agency, Bloom could turn to the trade market next.
There has been debate on how much trade value Benintendi could have based off his 2020 season. If you take out 2020, his games played per season has dropped over the last three years. There has been a decline with Benintendi but he holds trade value.
Benintendi is only 26-years old and has a very affordable contract. He is signed for the next two seasons and can officially become a free-agent in 2023. The contractual control be very appealing to teams like Oakland, Houston, Miami and the Chicago White Sox.
Potential Trade Comps
Over the last few years, there has been players in a similar situation to Benintendi that have been traded. A good comp to a possibly Benintendi trade could be one the Padres and Rays completed before last season.
The Rays traded Tommy Pham, top-15 prospect Jake Cronenworth to the Padres. In exchange the Rays acquired current Red Sox outfielder Hunter Renfroe who is controllable through 2024. The Rays also acquired prospects Xavier Edwards and infielder Esteban Quiroz.
The Red Sox could complete a trade similar to this deal and possibly take on money to acquire better prospects. There are multiple different options on the table available for Benintendi.
Trade with the Oakland A’s
The Oakland A’s have been incredibly quiet this offseason. They recently acquired Pirates reliever Nik Turley for cash. Before that, earlier last week, Boston Sports Journal’s Sean McAdam reported the A’s were interested in Benintendi.
One industry source believes an Andrew Benintendi deal could happen soon, but it won’t be with MIA: “That’s not happening.” Others who’ve checked in: TEX, HOU and OAK. Other source calls PIT a potential fit, mindful of Cherington connection.
— Sean McAdam (@Sean_McAdam) January 12, 2021
The A’s have merely just checked in on Benintendi. The A’s who were hit hard by the pandemic and could potentially be looking to move salary off the books.
While on the surface, there might be a potential match with Oakland, Benintendi could fill a void left by Robbie Grossman. He recently left the A’s as a free-agent to sign with the Detroit Tigers.
The Red Sox could complete an outside the box trade with the A’s. Could the Red Sox send Benintendi and cash back to Oakland for left-hander Sean Manaea?
Sean Manaea to Boston?
The tall left-hander finished with a 4-3 record, in 11 starts with a 4.50 ERA last season. When healthy Manaea can be dominant, as seen back in 2018 when he threw that no-hitter against the Red Sox.
The final out. History for Sean Manaea.
via @Athletics pic.twitter.com/ECwskLItn1
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) April 22, 2018
The likelihood of Manaea being traded aren’t farfetched. The A’s have some tough decisions to make on players as they head into arbitration. Besides Manaea, they have to deal with Mark Canha, Frankie Montas and Chris Bassitt.
Boston has been extremely tight lipped on their offseason plans. Manaea gives the Red Sox a proven starter for their flawed rotation. Oakland is thin on top-pitching prospects in their system. Boston could sweeten the deal and send Jay Groome back. Adding a prospect, Bloom could make a creative deal similar to the Pham/Renfroe deal by the Padres and Rays last offseason.
Use the Promo code “couchguy20” or “LLP” at Manscaped.com. Grab some of the best tools in men’s below the belt grooming. Furthermore, using the code you’ll get 20% off of your order AND free shipping. Help out the site and help out yourself by buying some products from Manscaped TODAY.
– Chris Henrique (@ChrisHenrique on Twitter)