Things have changed in a hurry for the Boston Red Sox.
They have gone from the laughing stock of the league to a sudden contender. Aided by a 15-game win streak, the Red Sox find themselves in wild card position, hunting down the Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees in the division standings. However, they still have some holes on their team.
The win streak has them in a position to actually buy at the deadline. They could really use help in the middle infield, and CJ Abrams is rumored to be available. The Washington Nationals reportedly made him and James Wood available in the winter, but now might be the time for the Red Sox to pounce.
According to USA Today's Bob Nightengale, the Red Sox are eying him at this year's deadline, but it will not be easy to acquire him. He has two more years of arbitration before hitting the open market, and it will take a monster haul to get him out of Washington. He was an All-Star this year for the second time and has a .904 OPS on the year. He is having a career year at the plate and would be a massive upgrade over Trevor Story.
Story is currently injured, and a return timeline is unclear. Adding Abrams would almost certainly mean the Red Sox would have to find a way to get rid of Story in the offseason, or move him to second base and get rid of Marcelo Mayer. However, Abrams is a legitimate star who could be a nice pairing with the Red Sox's current array of stars.
Adding Abrams is not only a move that could set the Red Sox up for success this year, but for the future. An offensive core of Roman Anthony, Ceddanne Rafaele, Wilyer Abreu, Caleb Durbin, Willson Contreras and Abrams could be great for the next few years.