The Boston Red Sox had a busy offseason, as did some of their division rivals, making the American League East especially difficult to win.
The Red Sox are not playing their best baseball right now, but one of their division rivals is also underperforming. The Toronto Blue Jays are four games under .500 entering play on Friday. They are coming off a run to the World Series, and injuries have kept them from playing well. However, Bleacher Report’s Zachary D. Rymer predicted they would make a major trade to acquire Ketel Marte from the Arizona Diamondbacks.
“He should be on the Blue Jays’ radar, as they need more pop arguably just as much as they need starting pitching,” wrote Rymer on Thursday. “He should also appeal to the Boston Red Sox, especially if Marcelo Mayer’s future is back at shortstop. Both clubs were linked to Marte over the winter.”
Marte is not hitting great this year. He has a .240 batting average through 46 games. However, that would be an upgrade over Andrés Giménez or Kazuma Okamoto in the Blue Jays’ infield. The Blue Jays could acquire Marte and move Ernie Clement to shortstop.
The Blue Jays spent big in the offseason, and missing the postseason altogether would be a massive disappointment. They still have time to get healthy and play better, just like the Red Sox. However, their front office may be more aggressive in going after Marte, feeling the pressure to deliver on high expectations.
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