Ranking the Best Red Sox Trades Since 2000

With the addition of Kyle Schwarber at the deadline and the impact he has made, I was curious to look back at previous deadline moves and compare. Now, just a quick history on me: I really started following the Red Sox closely in 2002 so I figured I would look back to 2000. Thanks to one of my followers on Twitter, I was reminded about the huge return in a 1997 trade with Seattle that saw Derek Lowe and Jason Varitek come to Boston. It would be difficult to beat that haul. 

What I decided to look at was the impact the player made in the season they acquired him. I did not look at a player like Jared Saltalamacchia, who went on to play 3 additional seasons after being acquired mid-season. I also did not take into consideration any prospects that were acquired because they did not impact the big league roster in the season they were traded. 

2000: 85-74 (2nd in A.L. East) - Missed Playoffs

• No Moves

2001: 82-79 (2nd in A.L. East) - Missed Playoffs

• Ugueth Urbina 19 G / 20 IP / 2.25 ERA / 0.8 WAR / 14.9 K/9

2002: 93-63 (2nd in A.L. East) - Missed Playoffs

• Bob Howry: 20 G / 18 IP / 5.00 ERA / -0.5 WAR / 7 K/9

2003: 95-67 (2nd in A.L. East) - Wild Card

• Brandon Lyon: 49 G / 59 IP /  4.12 ERA / 7.6 K/9

• Jeff Suppan: 11 G / 10 GS / 5.57 ERA / 0.3 WAR / 4.6 K/9

2004: 98-64 (2nd in A.L. East) - Wild Card

• Orlando Cabrera: 58 G / .294 / .320 / .465 / 0.9 WAR

• Doug Mientkiewicz: 49 G / .215 / .286 / .318 / -0.3 WAR

• Dave Roberts: 45 G / .256 / .330 / .442 / 0.3 WAR

2005: 95-67 (2nd in A.L. East) - Wild Card

• No Moves

2006: 86-76 (3rd in A.L. East) - Missed Playoffs

• No Moves

2007: 96-66 (1st in A.L. East) 

• Eric Gagne: 20 G / 18.2 IP / 6.75 ERA / 10.6 K/9 / -0.2 WAR

2008: 95-67 (2nd in A.L. East) - Wild Card

• Jason Bay: 49 G /.293 / .370 / .527 / 1.9 WAR

2009: 95-67 (2nd in A.L. East) - Wild Card

• Victor Martinez: 56 G / .336 / .405 / .507 / 1.3 WAR

2010: 89-73 (3rd in A.L. East) - Missed Playoffs

• Jarrod Saltalamacchia: 10 G / .158 / .360/ .316 / 0.0 WAR

2011: 90-72 (3rd in A.L. East) - Missed Playoffs

• Erik Bedard: 8 GS / 4.03 ERA / 9 K/9 / 0.0 WAR

2012: 69-93 (Last in A.L. East) - **The Great Dodger Trade**

• Craig Breslow: 23 G / 20 IP / 2.70 ERA / 8.6 K/9 / 0.8 WAR

2013: 97-65 (1st in A.L. East)

• Jake Peavy: 10 GS / 4.04 ERA / 6.3 K/9 / 0.6 WAR

2014: 71-91 (Last in A.L. East)

• Yoenis Cespedes: 51 G / .269 / .296 / .423 / 1.5 WAR

• Joe Kelly: 10 GS / 4-2 / 4.11 ERA / 6.0 K/9 / 0.3 WAR

• Heath Hembree: 6 G / 10 IP / 4.50 ERA / 4.5 K/9

2015: 78-84 (Last in A.L. East)

• Josh Rutledge: 39 G / .284 / .333 / .338 / -0.2 WAR

2016: 93-69 (1st in A.L. East)

• Drew Pomeranz: 14 G / 13 GS / 4.59 ERA / 9.3 K/9 / 0.5 WAR 

• Aaron Hill: 47 G / .218 /.287 / .290 / -0.4 WAR

• Brad Ziegler: 33 G / 1.52 ERA / 9.4 K/9 / 0.9 WAR

•  Fernando Abad: 18 G / 6.39 ERA / 8.5 K/9 / -2 WAR

2017: 93-69 (1st in A.L. East)

• Eduardo Núñuz: 38 G / .321 / .353 / .539 / 0.7 WAR

• Addison Reed: 29 G / 3.33 ERA / 9.3 K/9 / 0.6 WAR

2018: 108-54 (1st in A.L. East) 

• Nathan Eovaldi: 12 G / 11 GS / 3.33 ERA / 8.0 K/9 / 0.8 WAR

• Ian Kinsler: 37 G / .242 / .292 / .311 / -0.1 WAR

• Steve Pearce: 50 G / .279 / .394 / .507 / 1.1 WAR

2019: 84-78 (3rd in A.L. East) - Missed Playoffs

• No Moves

2020: 24-36 (Last in A.L. East)

• No Moves

2021: 86-65 (2nd in A.L. East)

 Kyle Schwarber: 30 G / .276 / .406 / .457 / 0.7 WAR

1. Steve Pearce

Pearce was mainly brought over to face left handed pitchers but he turned out to be so much more than that. Pearce was the classic veteran addition that every team can benefit from and I will never forget his 3 home run game against the Yankees. Oh, and he was the World Series MVP. 

2. Jason Bay

Bay was instant offense upon coming over in 2008 and provided power as he hit 11 home runs in 53 games including the postseason. You will have a hard time finding a player coming from a small market team (Pittsburgh) and quickly adjusting to Boston’s big market. He also hit .412 with a .478 OBP in the 4 playoffs games against the Angels. 

3. Nathan Eovaldi

Eovaldi gave the Red Sox 5 legit starters and really eased the anxiety of the fan base when Chris Sale was dealing with an injury in August. And let’s not forget the iconic World Series performance in the 18 inning game 3 where Eovaldi threw 6 innings in relief to keep the Red Sox in the game. I have never seen a team lose but look so confident and proud walking off the field after giving up a walk-off home run but that is exactly what Eovaldi’s performance did. 

4. Victor Martinez

For Martinez to come over from Cleveland and jump right in the middle of the Red Sox lineup was impressive. To hit .336 while mainly playing catcher, even more impressive.The combination of power and average is rare in today’s game. It was a joy to watch a year and half of Victor’s prime years. 

5. Kyle Schwarber

Schwarber took a few weeks to see an impact because he was injured at the time the Red Sox acquired him. Once he returned, his impact was immediate. He has shown incredible patience (.406), which the Red Sox lineup has lacked. And since his first game in a Red Sox uniform, the Sox are 20-14. It’s too early for a final evaluation but Schwarber has been a great deadline addition. 

Based on the list above, who would be in your top 5? I already anticipate a lot of fans giving me a hard time for leaving Orlando Cabrera off of the list. Based on the impact he made on a World Series winning team, it is difficult to argue against him. Let me know your thoughts! 

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