Spare a thought for Boston Red Sox fans over the past few weeks. There were some undoubted highs, including beating bitter rivals and AL East leader the New York Yankees across two series twice in the space of a week. The victories, which also featured a sweep, seemed to put the Sox back in contention for a Wild Card spot at least.
And then the bombshell dropped. Rafael Devers, the organization’s star player over the past few seasons, good enough to earn a contract over $300 million, was traded to the San Francisco Giants. The Sox got a couple of pitchers and two prospects in return. The move is being celebrated in the Bay Area, but there’s a bit of consternation in Beantown.
The Red Sox were always considered outsiders for the World Series before and after the Devers trade. They are currently trading at about +5000 in the latest MLB odds with leading sportsbooks. Yet, the consternation comes from the fact that the team finally looked like it was starting to gel. The Sox moved back into an AL Wild Card position with a 2-0 defeat of the Mariners the day after the Devers trade.
Breslow tried to calm the storm.
The question for Boston fans (and MLB bettors) is whether this is part of a grander plan or just a case of getting a player, one who was disgruntled, and his massive contract off the books. In scenes similar to the Dallas Mavericks’ hierarchy explaining the Luka Doncic trade, Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow defended the move:
“It’s important to point out that this is in no way signifying a waving of the white flag on 2025. We are as committed as we were six months ago to putting a winning team on the field, competing for the division, and making a deep postseason run.” Craig Breslow.
Now, here’s the thing: It’s normal for Breslow to come out and try to spin something positive like that; he’s hardly going to announce that the team has given up. Yet, the interesting part is the gamble on the Sox’s interesting youth players, including Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer.
Coin flip over a postseason berth
If you are not buying the chances of the Red Sox winning a World Series – and it is understandable why many won’t – a much more interesting bet is the +170 on offer for the team to make the postseason. It’s an intriguing price for a team that, as mentioned, has just sneaked back into Wild Card contention. If you think the Sox won’t hold on across the summer, the odds are -205 (all odds correct as of 06/17/25).
At the very least, it’s going to be interesting. The Red Sox’s 2025 season was based on a three-year plan, with Breslow as the principal architect. You can argue that the team has been unlucky, particularly with injuries to key players like Tristan Casas and Alex Bregman. Yet, the team is also making a bet on two things: youth and coherence. Devers was not happy, and the disruption was impacting his teammates. Breslow hopes to capture something of the spirit of facing adversity, like the Red Sox did in 2004 and 2013.