Red Sox Trade Idea Sees Boston Acquire $151 Million Giants Star

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The Boston Red Sox are not playing their best brand of baseball right now, and it may take a major move to actually save the season.

The Red Sox entered Wednesday 5.5 games out of a wild card spot, but Craig Breslow recently noted that the team is "absolutely not" giving up on the season. They have around six weeks to put themselves in a position to buy at the deadline and make a real postseason push in the final months. 

Even if the Red Sox close the gap in the wild card race, it might take a true blockbuster to really make them contenders. However, the Red Sox could still use the trade deadline to plan for the future if they do not see themselves as true buyers. With the San Francisco Giants reportedly open for business on some of their stars, Bleacher Report's Zachary D. Rymer proposed the idea of the Red Sox adding Matt Chapman.

"It's probably (i.e., almost certainly) too late for the Red Sox to salvage their season, so they might as well get ahead on planning for the future," wrote Rymer. "Getting Chapman now would be a good start. Unless they really believe Caleb Durbin is the answer, they're going to need a better third baseman. A right-handed power bat is also a need. Chapman checks both boxes and—spoiler alert—that makes him different from any player the Red Sox can sign as a free agent this winter."

Durbin has been hitting better as of late, but his overall numbers are still not great. Adding Chapman would allow Marcelo Mayer and Durbin to share time at second base. Meanwhile, Chapman would take over the hot corner.

Chapman has four seasons left on his six-year, $151 million deal after this season. He is slashing .261/348/.414 this season with seven home runs, while playing half of his games in San Francisco, a tough place to hit. He could be a key player for the Red Sox for the next few years.

Additionally, if the Red Sox pull within a couple of games of a wild card spot in the next six weeks, he could be the piece that helps push them into October.

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