Red Sox could be trying to build outfielder's trade value

Speculation has begun to swirl around Boston Red Sox outfielder Adam Duvall as a potential trade chip for the club this summer. Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe notes that rival executives think that Boston is playing Duvall virtually every day – despite the success of Jarren Duran in center field earlier this season – in hopes that the 34-year-old slugger will catch fire and become a tradable asset ahead of the deadline on August 1. MassLive’s Sean McAdam echoes the sentiment that Chaim Bloom’s front office could look to move Duvall, noting that starting pitching, left-handed relief and middle-infield help are among the weaknesses the Red Sox could look to patch up in return for Duvall’s services.

Duvall got off to one of the hottest starts in baseball to open the season across the league, slashing an incredible .455/.514/1.030 in eight games for the Red Sox prior to being sidelined with a fractured left wrist. While he returned to action earlier this month, Duvall has struggled in 13 games since returning from the IL, posting a slash line of just .146/.255/.268 in that space. Of course, Duvall’s performance both before and after the injury has come in an incredibly small sample sizes. The slugger has less than 100 plate appearances total on the season, meaning there’s still plenty of time for his numbers to stabilize one way or another as Boston weighs its options regarding their veteran outfielder.

More from around the AL East…

• Tampa Bay Rays fans can breathe a sigh of relief regarding ace Shane McClanahan Saturday, as Kristie Ackert of the Tampa Bay Times notes that the young lefty woke up “in a good spot” Friday morning after exiting Thursday’s start with mid-back tightness. Still, Ackert notes that the club is exercising caution with its prized left-hander and considering utilizing Monday’s off-day to hold his next start until next weekend against the Mariners in Seattle. Ackert adds that McClanahan was not sent for imaging and has continued his usual routine between starts. That McClanahan seems to be healthy is great news for the Rays, as the 26-year-old southpaw has put himself squarely in the midst of the AL Cy Young award discussion with an MLB-leading 2.23 ERA in 93 innings of work this season.
• Baltimore Orioles right-hander Mychal Givens was scratched from his planned rehab appearance at Triple-A Sunday, as noted by Nathan Ruiz of The Baltimore Sun. Instead, Givens is set to return to Baltimore for an evaluation. Further details about the evaluation are limited, though it certainly seems to be an ominous sign for the right-hander, who has been on the shelf with shoulder inflammation since the beginning of the month and had the start to his 2023 campaign delayed by knee inflammation. While Givens has been limited to just four innings of work by those injuries, the Orioles bullpen has nonetheless excelled thanks to the emergence of Felix Bautista and Yennier Cano as perhaps the best relief duo in baseball this season.