With the MLB trade deadline coming Thursday, members of the Worcester Red Sox shared their thoughts on having rumors about certain deals swirl around their team.
WORCESTER — As Worcester Red Sox players prepared for their Triple-A game Tuesday at Polar Park, the televisions inside the home clubhouse were tuned into a segment on MLB Network that highlighted some of the top trade targets for the Boston Red Sox.
With the MLB trade deadline looming at 6 p.m. Thursday, July 31, any deals the Red Sox might make could include some of the players sitting inside the WooSox clubhouse.
So how do these players deal with that uncertainty over the next 48 hours?
“It’s just one of those things I try not to pay attention to,” WooSox third baseman Blaze Jordan told the T&G prior to his team’s game against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. “All I can do is go out there and play, and (the Red Sox) handle all the business stuff and it’s just one of those things like, whatever’s best for my career I hope happens, you know, and whatever that may be.
“So, it’s just one of those things like I’m trying to win ball games while I’m here and just see what happens when that time comes. But you know, I love the Red Sox, so I’ve really enjoyed it.”
According to a story written by Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic, Red Sox prospects with a “high likelihood” of getting traded this week are Triple-A Worcester outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia and Jordan, who plays both third and first base for the WooSox.
McCaffrey also listed High-A Greenville outfielder Miguel Bleis in the category of a “high likelihood” for being dealt.
Since his promotion from Double-A Portland to Triple-A Worcester on June 3, Jordan has hit .288 with 6 HR with 24 RBI. The 22-year-old admits he hears about the trade rumors from his friends. Still Jordan, who remembers former teammate and Portland infielder Eddinson Paulino getting traded to the Toronto Blue Jays at last year’s deadline, is trying his best to stay away from the rumor mill this week and focus on being ready to play for the WooSox.
“It’s one of those things I really try not to think about too much and just see what happens and just go out there and play and be the best player I can be,” Jordan said. “My ultimate goal is to become a long-time major-league player. ... So I’m just trying to be the best version of the player I can be and just show the club here (who) I am.
“So, that’s kind of the biggest thing for me.”
With the Boston Red Sox in the market for some pitching help in their starting rotation and bullpen, and possibly at first base and designated hitter, the big-league club could choose to deal from their organizational positions of strength — which includes the outfield and middle infield — to help them make a push for the playoffs.
That’s where players like Bleis, Garcia and even Vaughn Grissom (who has played every infield position but catcher this season and is hitting .281 with 12 HR and 46 RBI for Worcester) come into play.
Yet, even with the different rumors and trade scenarios swirling around the WooSox, their manager claims the club isn’t paying attention to the looming trade deadline.
“We don’t even talk about it, to be honest with you, because you know all the rumors, like this time of year it seems like everybody can throw any name out,” Chad Tracy said. “And it’s like, ‘Oh, this could happen.’ It’s like none of that, you know, there’s a lot of things that people speculate that aren’t even true or haven’t even been discussed. So it’s a distraction.
Tracy later added: “Everybody’s aware of the time of year it is and everybody on our team and outside is aware that we have probably players here on our team that are appealing. You know, there’s no doubt. But also at the same time, like, I think a lot of these guys view it as, like, nothing I can do about that.”
For the next two days, however, all eyes will be on whose coming and whose going at the MLB trade deadline.
And we will see if any of those movements involve members of the Worcester Red Sox.
—Contact Tommy Cassell at [email protected]. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @tommycassell44.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Worcester Red Sox discuss their thoughts on looming MLB trade deadline
Category: Baseball
