The Boston Red Sox were among the league's most active teams leading up to the trade deadline, making two major moves to land All-Star catcher Adley Rutschman and breakout infielder Curtis Mead. Despite not adding at the position, Boston was heavily involved in the shortstop market. As the Red Sox look to build a contender in 2027, they figure to be back in the market for a long-term solution at the position. 

According to new reporting from Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, one of those deadline targets, Marlins All-Star shortstop Otto Lopez, could be available in offseason trade talks along with his middle infield counterpart, Xavier Edwards. 

“Though the Marlins aren’t believed to be shopping Lopez or Edwards, neither player is considered untouchable,” wrote Jackson. 

Both Edwards and Lopez would offer significant upgrades for the Red Sox at second base and shortstop, respectively. Thanks to injuries and underperformance, Boston used several players at both positions throughout the season, including Trevor Story, Marcelo Mayer, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Anthony Seigler, Andruw Monasterio, and Nick Sogard. 

With a slash line of .248/.309/.350/.659, the Red Sox got some of the worst production in baseball out of their shortstops, ranking in the bottom half of the league in on-base percentage (T-15th), slugging percentage (24th), OPS (22nd), and weighted runs created plus (83, T-23rd). 

The picture is not much prettier at second where Boston second basemen hit .236/.306/.367/.673. Marks that ranked them in the bottom 10 in batting average (22nd), on-base percentage (20th), slugging percentage (20th), OPS (23rd) and wRC+ (87, 23rd). 

The Red Sox do have top prospect, shortstop Franklin Arias, waiting in the wings as an option to takeover at either position. However, they had shown a willingness to trade him if it meant acquiring an established player at the position. 

After being designated for assignment by both Toronto and San Francisco in 2024, Lopez has become one of the best shortstops in the National League in three seasons with the Marlins. 

In 157 games in 2026, the 28-year-old hit .305/.349/.437/.786 with 11 home runs, 32 doubles, 11 triples, stole 34 bases, and drove in 71 runs, earning his first All-Star selection. 

Defensively, Lopez ranked among the top 10 shortstops in defensive runs saved (6, T-7th), outs above average (14, 6th), and fielding run value (12, 5th). Lopez’s fWAR of 5.9 ranked third among 22 qualified shortstops, trailing only Kansas City Royals star Bobby Witt Jr. and Cincinnati Reds star Elly De La Cruz. 

Lopez is under team control through the 2029 season. MLB Trade Rumors estimates he’ll be owed $5.4 million in his first year of arbitration.  

A former first-round pick of the San Diego Padres in the 2018 MLB Draft, Edwards has spent four seasons in the big leagues with Miami. In 142 games in 2026, the 27-year-old switch-hitter hit .280/.360/.371/.731 with six home runs, 17 doubles, six triples, stole 21 bases on 26 attempts, and drove in 51 runs. 

Defensively, Edwards is slightly below average, posting defensive runs saved and outs above average of -2 and a fielding run value of -1. His fWAR of 2.3 ranked 14th among 20 qualified second basemen. 

Like Lopez, Edwards is under team control through the 2029 season. According to MLBTR, Edwards is projected to make $3.5 million in 2027. 

As Jackson reports, Miami will want “a lot” in exchange for their young, controllable middle infielders, with Lopez presumably commanding a heftier package. After depleting the farm system to land Rutschman, the Red Sox likely don’t have the high-level talent in their organization to land Lopez without including Arias. 

Swapping the 20-year-old top prospect could be an interesting proposition for Breslow, though. Arias has a profile similar to Lopez, aside from the latter’s 81st percentile sprint speed. Could Boston be interested in swapping their top prospect for an already established player at the same position? On one hand, Lopez would have only three years of team control, while Arias would have six. But after seeing top prospects Marcelo Mayer, Kristian Campbell, and Roman Anthony not pan out initially, could Breslow be wary of relying on top prospects to come up and perform immediately? 

From the Marlins' perspective, is simply resetting the service time clock enough to make the move one for one? If the ask is more than Arias alone, the Red Sox would likely hold on to the No. 2 prospect in the sport and seek upgrades elsewhere. 

As for Edwards, it seems unlikely that the Red Sox have enough prospect capital to land the 27-year-old without including Arias, which would figure to be an overpay, making Lopez the more ideal target.