The Boston Red Sox have had an offseason that has produced mixed results among the fanbase, particularly in pitching and the infield. The major thing to address this offseason was pitching, especially with Lucas Giolito becoming a free agent, uncertainty about Brayan Bello being a number 2 starter, and the young guys not being fully ready to claim a big role just yet. So the front office decided to make some moves, acquiring Sonny Gray in a trade and signing Phillies star Ranger Suárez to further improve depth.
However, the other major issue was needing a power bat. Trading franchise star Rafael Devers midseason removed the home run hitter from the Red Sox’s lineup, leaving a major void. The Red Sox proceeded to leave an average of 6.95 runners stranded on base per game, ninth worst in baseball during the 2025 season. With no power hitters to drive them in, it was a major issue. And things just got worse.
On January 14th, 2026, third baseman Alex Bregman left the team to sign with the Chicago Cubs. With second base being a toss-up on who to start, Bregman’s leaving caused another hole in the infield. In the short-term or long-term run, they could start former shortstop Marcelo Mayer at third. This would create a left side of Trevor Story and Mayer. On the right side, the Red Sox traded for Willson Contreras to play first. Contreras could platoon with Triston Casas or become the full-time first baseman. However, the second base position is still up in the air. Craig Breslow has stated that Romy Gonzalez and David Hamilton splitting time could work. There have been rumors about trading with the Cubs for an infielder. Although there’s a third trade option that’s going under the radar currently in Washington’s CJ Abrams.
Why CJ Abrams for Second Base?
The Red Sox have made it clear this offseason that they’re not super in on any of the power hitters available. They missed out on Kyle Schwarber and Pete Alonso during the Winter Meetings and then watched Eugenio Suárez sign with the Reds. These three players hit 56, 38, and 49 homers, respectively. While having a power hitter would be nice, all three of those guys had strikeout percentages well over 20% this past season:
- Schwarber: 27.2%
- Alonso: 22.8%
- Suarez: 29.8%
Now granted, the more home runs a player hits, the more prone he is to striking out. However, this doesn’t seem to go with Boston’s plan. Abrams has a Strikeout% of 19.7, down from 21.3% in 2024, and that’s while playing six more games. So his chances of striking out are relatively low, ranking in the top 75 of the lowest rates.
Another reason is his baserunning. Abrams was 31/34 in stolen base attempts this past season. This goes along with 35 doubles and five triples. He’s fast on the basepaths, having a baserunning run value of 7 (putting him in the 96th percentile), tying him with potential teammates Jarren Duran and Story. The 2025 Red Sox had valued speed on the basepaths throughout the season, stealing 139 bases, with four guys stealing 20+. This 139 mark put them just outside the top 5 in all of baseball. But with Abrams’ mark of 31, they would’ve been second in baseball behind Tampa Bay.
Abrams isn’t exactly known for his power; he did hit 19 homers this season, which would’ve placed third on the team behind Story and Wilyer Abreu. His 35 doubles would’ve been second, behind Duran. While his average isn’t the greatest at .257, his OBP is .315, a mark that fits right in with Boston. Very few hitters who played 60+ with the Sox had .OBP’s under .300.
Why Not Abrams?
His hitting and base running fit in perfectly with this current Red Sox system. However, the elephant in the room to address with Abrams is his fielding. He was second in all of baseball with 22 errors, only behind Elly De La Cruz. If they pair him up in an infield with Story, who actually finished third in errors with 21, it could be setting up for a nightmare. But with Story at shortstop, Abrams’ primary position would be second with Boston. It’s been a while since Abrams played second base, but he has done it before. In 2021, he played second with San Diego, prior to the Juan Soto trade. He only played 13 games there, but in those games, he had only two errors.
A counter to that would be that in 2023, he also had 22 errors from shortstop, and still somehow had a positive impact in defensive runs saved (4). And again, a change from the left to the right side of the infield full-time might do Abrams some good.
Why the Nationals Do This
The Washington Nationals seem to be trending towards a “blow it up and rebuild” phase. They finished last in the NL East last year and just traded Mackenzie Gore to the Texas Rangers. They haven’t discussed trading James Wood yet, and it seems like he could be the cornerstone, along with Dylan Crews, if they keep him. Currently, their backup shortstop is Nasim Nunez, who, while not the best hitter, did do significantly better fielding than Abrams with a significant amount of playing time (128.0 innings), but significant in a way that shows promise. Nunez could be a placeholder until the Nationals’ top prospect comes up. Eli Willits, the 13th-best prospect in baseball, had a promising sample size in single-A this past year.
Why the Red Sox Do This
As mentioned previously, the Red Sox have a gaping hole at second base. There’s the current situation of Gonzalez and Hamilton, then there’s Kristian Campbell in Worcester. Despite a hot start in April last year, he seems to be phasing out as of now. They’ve had a long-term second base problem since Dustin Pedroia left. And they have no problem switching positions around, as Bregman was willing to switch from third to second to keep Devers in the infield.
His contract is also controllable till 2029, and he’s just 25 years old. So if Abrams is willing to switch, it’s an experiment worth trying. It could cost the Red Sox a young pitcher, but with their depth, this trade to fix a problem could be worth it.
Main Photo Credit: G Fiume/Getty Images)