Boston Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom says his focus is trying to get his struggling team to the playoffs as the Aug. 2 trade deadline approaches.
The Red Sox executive appeared on NESN in New England on Tuesday night and seemed to shoot down the notion that Boston (49-48) could be a seller prior to the trade deadline.
“Everybody moved to writing off this group. We’re not," Bloom said, per the Boston Herald. "We’re trying to make the post-season. We’re going to explore a lot of stuff. Some of that might be things people expect, some of it might not be, but we want to get this group to the post-season.”
The Red Sox beat the Cleveland Guardians on Monday night, temporarily halting a rough stretch that continued with an ugly sweep at the hands of the Toronto Blue Jays over the weekend.
Boston entered play on Tuesday three games back of a wild-card spot, prompting talk that the Red Sox could trade stars Xander Bogaerts or Rafael Devers.
Asked about potentially dealing them, Bloom said, "We don't plan to."
Bogaerts can become a free agent after this season and Devers can hit the market after the 2023 campaign.
Meanwhile, ESPN's Buster Olney reported Tuesday the Red Sox could trade designated hitter J.D. Martinez.
Bloom said a pinky finger injury to starter Chris Sale two weeks ago had a major impact in the clubhouse.
“In just this season alone, we’ve been in worse spots than this," he said. "I know we’re banged up, losing Chris, I don’t want to minimize that. It’s meaningful. But we still have a lot of talent. When we play well, we can win games.”
