Trade deadline implications
Jul 17 2026
The Boston Red Sox are back in the wild card race, but they still have closer Aroldis Chapman (LHP, BOS) as a rental. Might they sell him for a bat (or a prospect) and install Garrett Whitlock (RHP, BOS) at closer? Here are the numbers so far:
| BOS | SV | HD | IP | xERA | pxERA | WHIP | K% | K-BB% | HR/9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chapman, Aroldis | 19 | 0 | 28.2 | 3.48 | 2.93 | 1.22 | 30% | 20% | 0.3 |
| Whitlock, Garrett | 2 | 16 | 33.0 | 3.22 | 3.04 | 0.94 | 29% | 24% | 0.8 |
Whitlock has been every bit as good as Chapman and the Red Sox need offense. They have been coy about trading Chapman, but it seems quite likely that they will trade him for a bat and then perhaps add bullpen help to bolster set-up. Expect the Red Sox to wait until the absolute deadline hour and then decide, but it all makes Whitlock an attractive speculative add in saves...
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