Why the Red Sox Have Already Won the Mitch Moreland Trade

The Boston Red Sox had a tough year and were at the very bottom of the AL East in 2020, so Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom had to trade his veterans with expiring contracts to get some young talent in return.

One of those veterans was fan-favorite Mitch Moreland. He was traded to the young and electric San Diego Padres before the deadline to fill their DH spot in an effort to take down the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Unfortunately, San Diego fell short. After beating the St. Louis Cardinals in the Wild Card Series, they were swept by their rival in blue in the NLDS to end their 2020 season.

Of course, Padres GM A.J. Preller acquired Moreland for this year only, as he is a free agent this offseason. Since the Padres weren’t able to win the World Series, their acquisition of Mitch Moreland didn’t work out and therefore, the Red Sox won the trade.

Boston acquired 3B/1B prospect Hudson Potts and OF prospect Jeisson Rosario from the Friars and don’t be surprised if one of them makes a big impact at the big league level.

While Rosario hasn’t been able to hit above Class-A, Potts is a different story. He was blocked by franchise cornerstones Manny Machado and Eric Hosmer, but make no mistake about it–Potts can hit. The 21-year-old has hit at least 17 home runs in each of the last three minor league seasons while moving up the minor league ranks at a consistent rate. In 2019 he reached Double-A where he reached 16 of his 17 home runs.

Potts could become a younger Mitch Moreland at first base for the Red Sox in the very near future if he continues to hit at a high rate, and he hasn’t reached the big leagues obviously, so he would be paid at the league minimum–allowing Bloom to spend money to fill other places on the roster.

(Photo: Fred Thornhill/The Canadian Press via AP Photo)