Could the Philadelphia Phillies pull off this huge trade with the Boston Red Sox?
Right now, the Philadelphia Phillies are in desperate need of outfield help. Harrison Bader and Max Kepler are both free agents, and president Dave Dombrowski has already stated that Kepler is a goner. Plus, the Phillies are doing everything in their power to unload Nick Castellanos.
Yes, Philadelphia re-signed Kyle Schwarber, clearing its top priority of the offseason, but there is obviously more work to be done.
In terms of repairing the outfield, Mike Petriello of MLB.com has made a suggestion for the Phillies, and it involves trading for Boston Red Sox outfielder Wilyer Abreu.
"There are only three outfielders on the 40-man roster, and only Brandon Marsh is anything resembling a starter," Petriello wrote. "Even if top prospect Justin Crawford makes the team, it wouldn’t be in right, and with Schwarber almost entirely a DH, the outfield remains a large need, second only to catcher."
Abreu slashed .247/.317/.469 with 22 home runs and 69 RBI over 417 plate appearances in 2025, also winning his second straight Gold Glove award.
Boston Red Sox outfielder Wilyer Abreu. Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images.The 26-year-old hit the big leagues with the Red Sox in 2023 and played his first full season in 2024, slashing .253/.322/.459 with 15 homers, 33 doubles and 58 RBI across 447 trips to the dish.
So, why would Boston trade him?
Well, the Red Sox have a bit of an outfield logjam, so both Abreu and Jarren Duran have been floated as potential trade candidates for quite some time.
The problem is that Abreu would not come cheap.
Abreu is under team control through 2029, so Boston can ask for a substantial package in return. Philadelphia does not have a deep farm system as it is, so it would almost certainly have to include one of Crawford, Andrew Painter or Aidan Miller in the deal.
Would the Phillies do that for someone with a lifetime .791 OPS? Given how good Abreu is defensively, perhaps. Plus, Philadelphia's outfield is in dire straits.
The Phillies have to do something in order to fix this problem. Maybe re-signing Bader will prove to be the club's top move to address the issue, but even if they do retain Bader, they'll still need to add another outfielder.