Will Red Sox ‘pony up’ at trade deadline? MLB insider provides latest

Craig Breslow has been adamant that he wants to bolster the Red Sox at the trade deadline.

But perhaps that won’t be the case anymore.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported the latest on Boston’s deadlines plans, noting that “at this moment, the Red Sox are not inclined to engage in any large-scale deadline moves."

“Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow has said the team wants to add after trading (Rafael) Devers, and while it would surprise no one if they did, Boston is an organization that deeply values operating efficiently, and a market like this is the epitome of inefficient,” Passan wrote. “Holding now would speak to the Red Sox’s comfort with their current roster and the exceptional price to bolster it.”

The Red Sox could certainly benefit from first base and pitching help. Minnesota Twins pitcher Joe Ryan has been in trade rumors and would fill a hole for Boston.

“When the Red Sox are playing well, they look like world beaters, and when they’re not, they just look beat,” Passan wrote. “Maybe they pony up to get Ryan, seeing it the same way they did in the four-prospect haul it took to land (Garrett) Crochet, but for now, at least, they simply haven’t been willing to go there.”

Whether the Red Sox change their mind leading up to the deadline remains unknown. They came out of the All-Star break on a 10-game winning streak, but have won just one game since then and are in danger of getting swept by the Philadelphia Phillies on Wednesday night.

Earlier this month, Breslow told MassLive’s Chris Cotillo Boston’s play before the All-Star break gave the team reason to believe it can continue in the second half.

“We want to improve the team. We want to find ways to bolster the group,” Breslow said. “The play on the field exemplifies that. We’ve obviously put ourselves in a pretty good spot here with the way that we’ve been playing over the last few weeks and have reason to believe that we can continue that.”