Did the Red Sox Get Enough for Mookie Betts in the New Revised Deal?

After the Mookie Betts trade appeared to be falling apart at the seams, the Twins, Red Sox and Dodgers were able to come to an agreement Sunday evening to a revised deal that appeased all parties.

In the new deal, the Red Sox will still be getting OF Alex Verdugo from the Dodgers. They will also receive Dodgers prospects SS Jeter Downs and C Connor Wong. Twins P Brusdar Graterol, who was going to the Red Sox in the original deal, will now be headed to the Dodgers. Graterol will join Mookie Betts and David Price in Los Angeles and the Red Sox will pay half of Price’s remaining salary over the next 3 seasons.

The Dodgers are sending P Kenta Maeda and cash to Minnesota, as originally planned. Los Angeles will receive a draft pick from the Minnesota as well. The Twins and Dodgers are also said to be swapping low-level prospects.

Reaction to the deal has remained generally negative for the Red Sox, but fans appear to be a bit more pleased with this revised package. This latest poll has over 60% of fans saying this new deal is better than the original.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported that people around baseball have viewed the Red Sox haul for Betts fairly favorably and have compared the deal to the Arizona Diamondbacks trade of 6-time All-Star and 2-time MVP runner-up Paul Goldschmidt last offseason.

According to MLB.com, Jeter Downs was the 5th ranked prospect in the Dodgers system. Connor Wong ranked 28th. Neither player has reached the MLB-level just yet, with some saying Downs MLB ETA could be realistically set at around 2021.

The Red Sox improved return still won’t be enough to make up for the loss of a superstar like Mookie Betts, but fans can take solace in the fact that Boston was able to squeeze out a slightly better deal in the end. Downs and Verdugo should both be above average MLB players at their positions with a chance to turn into much more. Neither will ever be as good as Mookie Betts, but it’s a solid duo assuming the Red Sox weren’t prepared to offer Mookie what it would cost to keep him next offseason.

Photo: (Michael Dwyer – AP Photo)