The Boston Red Sox spent a lot of time at the trade deadline looking for a long-term answer at shortstop, checking in on star players like the Houston Astros' Jeremy Pena, Los Angeles Angels' Zach Neto, and even superstars like Bobby Witt Jr. of the Kansas City Royals and Cincinnati Reds' Elly De La Cruz. 

After striking out at the deadline, the Red Sox could re-explore the shortstop market as they look to upgrade a lineup that sputtered to the finish line. On The Fan LA's D-Mac and Reiter Show, former Reds and Washington Nationals general manager and writer for The Athletic Jim Bowden said Cincinnati could be more open to offers for their superstar shortstop: "Absolutely, I do," Bowden said when asked about De La Cruz's availability. Bowden went on to describe a conversation between Reds owner Phil Castellini and president Nick Krall about why the Milwaukee Brewers have a similar payroll to Cincinnati, and they win, while the Reds don't. Part of Krall's answer was that when Milwaukee has star players they know they won't pay, they trade them for massive prospect packages before they hit free agency. Meanwhile, when Krall approaches Castellini with similar proposals, he is told he cannot trade a superstar. 

Bowden added that Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow called at the deadline and made a "strong offer" at the deadline and was turned down. 

De La Cruz would be a home-run addition to any acquiring team. In 143 games in 2026, the 24-year-old hit .283/.365/.515/.880 with 30 home runs, 30 doubles, and 30 steals, driving in 79 runs. In four seasons with Cincinnati, the two-time All-Star shortstop has hit .262/.338/.463/.801 with 90 home runs, 112 doubles, 90 triples and 169 stolen bases. De La Cruz is not without his warts at the plate, though, as he sports a career 29.2 percent strikeout rate. However, after back-to-back seasons with a strikeout rate over 30 percent to start his career, the 24-year-old cut that down to 25.9 percent and 27.5 percent in each of the last two seasons. 

Defensively, De La Cruz is a mixed bag. Since 2023, his -20 defensive runs saved ranked 16th out of 17 qualified shortstops. However, he fared better in both outs above average (18) and fielding run value (12), where he ranks seventh. De La Cruz also has one of the strongest arms at the position, ranking in the 91st percentile in arm strength. 

De La Cruz is under team control through the end of the 2029 season. Cincinnati approached him with a contract extension that eclipsed Joey Votto's franchise-record-setting 10-year, $225-million deal ahead of the 2025 season, but he turned it down. 

The 24-year-old is one of baseball's most exciting players and, with three seasons under team control, the price to acquire him will be steep. After trading top prospects Anthony Eyanson, Enddy Azocar, and Kyson Witherspoon to the Baltimore Orioles for All-Star catcher Adley Rutschman at the trade deadline, the Red Sox farm system is fairly thin, ranking No. 21 in Baseball America's rankings. Any deal for De La Cruz would certainly include Boston's top prospect and the No. 2-rated prospect in the sport, shortstop Franklin Arias. Beyond Arias, Breslow will likely have to subtract from his major league roster to put together a package enticing enough for Cincinnati to part with their superstar. Because of his belief in the pitching development program, Breslow has shown a willingness to trade starting pitching depth; could rookie left-hander Jake Bennett be included in a potential package? It would certainly hurt the Red Sox pitching depth after trading Eyanson and Witherspoon, but does getting the star that is De La Cruz balance that loss? 

Still, that likely wouldn't be enough to land the 24-year-old star, so now enters the outfield logjam. Jarren Duran has long seemed like the most likely candidate to be traded from the outfield group. However, at 30 and with a projected arbitration figure north of $11 million, he likely wouldn't interest the Reds. In limited time in right field, Roman Anthony has performed well, posting nine defensive runs saved, four outs above average, and a fielding run value of three. Could the team shift Anthony to right and make Gold Glover Wilyer Abreu available in talks? The 27-year-old played the most he ever has in a single season in 2026 and proved he can hit left-handed pitching. However, his rate stats were largely the same. Abreu is under team control for another three seasons and represents a long-term solution for Cincinnati in an unimpressive outfield group. 

Giving up a package of Arias, Bennett and Abreu would undoubtedly hurt. However, De La Cruz is the kind of star power the Red Sox haven't had since Mookie Betts and would be a massive upgrade in the lineup. Of course, he's signaled that he is not willing to sign an extension as of now. However, with three years of control, there's plenty of time to both find common ground on a deal and for De La Cruz to outperform the package given up to acquire him.