In the days leading up to the trade deadline, the picture has become clearer as to where the Boston Red Sox will look to upgrade their lineup: shortstop and catcher. Among the names rumored to be available at shortstop is Miami Marlins' All-Star Otto Lopez, and as they have been with nearly every shortstop rumored to be available, the Red Sox have been linked to the 27-year-old. 

ESPN's Buster Olney was first to report Boston's interest in Lopez, writing on Tuesday, "The Boston Red Sox are searching for a shortstop, and one name that has come up in conversations is the Miami Marlins' Otto Lopez." 

"'He'd be a great player for them,' said one rival executive with knowledge of Boston's interest," he continued. 

After being designated for assignment by both Toronto and San Francisco in 2024, Lopez is in his third season with the Marlins, where he has hit .278/.325/.408/.733 in 364 games. While the 27-year-old performed well in each of his first two seasons in Miami, he has broken out in a big way in 2026, hitting .329/.363/.490/.853 with 27 doubles, seven triples, nine home runs, and 22 stolen bases en route to his first All-Star appearance. His fWAR of 4.4 is the fifth-highest in baseball and second among all shortstops, trailing only Kansas City Royals' superstar Bobby Witt Jr. 

Miami manager Clayton McCullough has hit his All-Star shortstop primarily in the No. 2 and 3 hole in the lineup, though given his combination of contact and speed, paired with the Red Sox' desperate need for a leadoff man, he figures to be more than capable of leading things off should he wind up in Boston. 

Defensively, Lopez has been one of the best defenders at short over the last two years, ranking in the top 10 among all qualified shortstops in defensive runs saved (14, 3rd), outs above average (8, 9th), and fielding run value (7, 8th). 

With only two years of service time, Lopez is in the final year of his pre-arbitration years and will be under team control through the 2030 season, offering Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow the long-term solution at shortstop that he has reportedly been seeking. 

Miami has lost 12 of its last 15 games, but still finds itself just two games back of Philadelphia for the final wild-card spot in the National League. Still, though, according to Will Sammon of The Athletic, Miami is open for business. "The Marlins are willing to listen regarding potential offers for some intriguing young players such as middle infielders Otto Lopez and Xavier Edwards, catcher/designated hitter Liam Hicks and outfielder Heriberto Hernández, league sources said," wrote Sammon on Wednesday morning. 

Thanks to his three years of team control beyond the 2026 season, the usually frugal Marlins are not in any rush to move on from their All-Star shortstop, meaning he will not come cheap for any team looking to acquire his services. 

When looking for any potential package to acquire Lopez, one would assume that former first-round pick shortstop Marcelo Mayer would be heading back to Miami as Boston paves the way for Lopez to take over the shortstop position. However, given Mayer's struggles at the major league level, Breslow would undoubtedly have to part with multiple other top prospects in order to convince Miami President of Baseball Operations Peter Bendix to move on from Lopez. 

As the trade market continues to take shape ahead of Monday's deadline, one thing remains clear: Breslow is aggressively pursuing upgrades in a way that he hasn't in each of his first two deadlines. 

WBZ and WEEI's Joe Weil joined the 'Entering Kenmore' Podcast to discuss the Red Sox' miraculous midseason turnaround, their pursuit of upgrades ahead of the deadline, and more. Check it out wherever you get your podcasts or YouTube!

The MLB Trade Deadline is Aug. 3 at 6:00 p.m. ET.