A Bunch of Trades

Just putting a few trades together in one post here. 

1.  Eduardo Rodriguez.  E-Rod is having a great year this year.  Unfortunately, it's for Arizona.  He was always one of my favorites.  I thought after his 19-win, 200+ strikeout season in 2019, he was finally going to break out, but he missed the 2020 COVID season and was good but not great in 2021 and 2022 before leaving as a free agent.

2.  Jeter Downs.  Downs was a casualty of the lost 2020 season.  Losing an entire year of development was brutal for him.  He was supposed to be the top prospect in the Mookie Betts trade.

3.  Masataka Yoshida.  Yoshida is quietly having a nice season.  He has one more year on his contract, which has largely been a miss.

4.  Garrett Crochet.  Crochet has been injured most of the season, but the team has survived with the emergence of Payton Tolle in particular, as well as great seasons from Sonny Gray and Ranger Suarez.

5.  Nomar Garciaparra.  I am very curious to see how Nomar does on an Eras Committee.  I think he is close to being eligible.  Maybe by the time the next Today's Game Era Committee meets again.  

1.  Triston Casas.  Casas hasn't played since early in 2025 and hasn't played a whole season since his rookie year in 2023.  It's a shame.  His power could really come in handy on this team.

2.  Pedro Martinez.  It's always fun to add another Martinez card.

3.  Cy Young.  I like it when card companies dip back into the turn of the 20th century for players.  I would love to see a company release a set with throwback designs and cover all players from this era.  Let's see Bill Dinneen, Buck Freeman, Chick Stahl, Jimmy Collins and other great Boston players from that era.

4.  Chris Sale.  I think it is safe to say that Sale is back on track for the Hall of Fame.  The question is which hat will he wear on his plaque?  He seems like a good one to have a blank cap because he has been great for three teams.  This card celebrates his strikeout of Manny Machado to win the 2018 World Series.

5.  Manny Ramirez.  Ramirez was the 2004 World Series MVP, the first Red Sox player to win the award.

6.  Kristian Campbell.  Campbell has been showing up a lot in my posts lately.

1.  John Valentin.  Valentin remains one of the most underrated players in Red Sox history.  He was never an All Star, though he did win a Silver Slugger.  He probably should have won a Gold Glove.  For Boston, he hit .281/.361/.460 with 121 home runs as an infielder.

2.  John Valentin.  Yep, two Valentin cards in one trade.

3.  Brian Rose.  Another reason to be skeptical of prospects.  There was a time when Brian Rose was Boston's top prospect.  He had a 5.86 ERA in his Major League career.

1.  Tanner Houck.  Houck is another player whose Major League career has been on hold for over a year.  He had Tommy John surgery last year.  He might be getting close to a return.  He was an All Star in 2024.

2.  Joe Wood.  Smoky Joe Wood has one of the greatest pitching seasons in Red Sox history in 1912 when he was 34-5 with a 1.91 ERA and 258 strikeouts in 344 innings pitched.  Unfortunately, arm injuries (most likely stemming from overuse) derailed his career.

3.  Josh Taylor.  Taylor was a great southpaw in the Red Sox bullpen in 2019 and 2021.  He was traded to the Royals for Adalberto Mondesi (Raul Mondesi's son), but the trade was a bust for both teams.  Taylor was terrible in Kansas City and Mondesi never played for the Red Sox due to injuries.

4.  Wade Boggs.  Boggs is obviously a first-ballot Hall of Famer, but he was actually kind of underrated.  Modern analytics would have identified him as one of the best players in the game, but because he played in the 1980's, his lack of power kept him out of that conversation.  He had an OPS of .890 during his time in Boston.

5.  David Ortiz.  An All Star card of Ortiz.  He was an All Star ten times.  All with the Red Sox.

6.  Payton Tolle.  I think I am going to be getting a lot of Tolle cards from now on.  I just really like him.  I'm definitely glad Boston kept him.  He has a lower floor, but a higher ceiling than Connelly Early.

7.  Jarren Duran.  I want Duran to succeed, but I do think it would be better for all parties if he is traded this offseason.  Boston could use the roster spot and Duran could use a fresh start.

Closing things out with a Ceddy mini.  

Three Blaster Break

A few weeks ago I managed to walk into my local Walmart apparently immediately after they stocked the trading cards.  There were quite a few brands to choose from.  Knowing that this was unlikely to last, I decided to grab three blasters, one from each of three sets.  And it was a shockingly decent result from each blaster.

Up first is Bowman: 

1.  Hector Ramos.  This is my first card of Ramos.  According to Sox Prospects, Ramos is Boston's 28th ranked prospect.  The middle infielder was an international free agent in 2025.  It may be awhile before we really start hearing much about him.  

2.  Justin Gonzales.  This is the big one from this.  First off, it's a Mojo Refractor, and secondly, Gonzales has become a big-time prospect.  He is now Boston's #2 prospect and he has prodigious power.  He is a massive human at 6'6" and 270 lbs.  Boston turned down requests for him in deals so he seems ticketed for the team soon.

3.  Nelly Taylor.  Taylor was an 11th-round pick for the Red Sox in 2023.  He is not rated at this time.  He is in Double-A at this time.

Up next is Topps Series 2:

1.  Wilyer Abreu.  Abreu seems headed on his way to a third Gold Glove Award.  His advanced defensive metrics have him far and away the best defensive right-fielder in the game.  Coupled with his 20+ homer power and Abreu is a seriously underrated player.

2.  Payton Tolle.  Tolle is quickly becoming one of my favorite players.  He recently had a 14-strikeout game.  I am not sure how he is not getting more support for the Rookie of the Year.  I know he is not going to win, but he has been a consistently good pitcher all year.

3.  Trevor Story.  This has been yet another lost season for Story.  He has not played since May and was struggling even then.

4.  Trevor Story/Jarren Duran.  Here are two players who were expected to be big parts of the offense and have not lived up to expectations.  As said, Story has been injured most of the season.  Duran is currently hitting .201.  He is on pace for a 20/20 season, but strikes out at an alarming rate and has a 72 OPS+.

5.  Kutter Crawford.  I'm not sure why Crawford even has a card in the set.  He has not pitched since 2024 until just recently when he made his first appearance on a rehab stint.  This spot could have been used for someone like Greg Weissert who has yet to have a card with the Red Sox or Patrick Sandoval who had been rehabbing and made it back a few weeks ago.

Last but not least is Donruss:

1.  Marcelo Mayer.  I pull a lot of Mayer cards.  Hopefully that will switch over to someone actually still on the team.  Mayer was traded to the Giants at the trading deadline for Erik Miller.

2.  Jason Varitek.  Holy crap, I pulled a Varitek card.  He remains my favorite player of all time.  This is card number 1,006.

3.  Kristian Campbell.  I also seem to pull a lot of Campbell cards.  He has been hitting a lot in Worcester lately.  I wonder if he could make it back to the Majors this year yet.  I also wonder where he will play going forward.  I could see Boston cutting ties with both Jarren Duran and Masataka Yoshida over the offseason, which would open up a potential spot for him as a roving outfielder/designated hitter.  

Stadium Club Trade

It's another trade post.  This one got me a few random Stadium Club singles. 

1.  Hirokazu Sawamura.  Sawamura was a valuable bullpen piece in 2021, but his struggles in 2022 led to his release.  This is my second autograph card of him.

2.  Eric Hosmer.  Ah yes, a Hosmer sighting.  Hosmer was acquired at the trading deadline in 2022 after turning down inclusion in the Juan Soto to the Padres deal.  Hosmer did very little in Boston, playing in 14 games and hitting .244/.320/.311.  The deal cost former first-round pick Jay Groome, who never made the Majors.

3.  Alex Bregman.  I will be doing a One Year Wonder post for Bregman some day.  He had a very good season in 2025.  The question is: was he better than Adrian Beltre's sole season in Boston.  I think the answer to that is pretty obvious, but I will still do a post about it.

Donruss Blaster Break

I have mentioned before my affinity for Panini brands.  The lack of a license is annoying, but I always do really well with Red Sox cards.  So, I jumped on the opportunity to grab a Donruss blaster.  I don't really understand how their agreement works anymore.  For a few years, iIt used to be they could not have cards of current Major Leaguers, they would do prospects and retired players.  Now, they seem to have some current Major Leagues in the sets, such as Aaron Judge.

1.  Roger Clemens.  One of these days, I still want to see Clemens make the Hall of Fame.  He was a first-round draft pick by the Red Sox.

2.  Carlton Fisk.  I learned something the other day.  I actually did not know that Fisk was a first-round draft pick and that he was the fourth overall pick.  I honestly thought he pre-dated the Draft.  That means Boston has drafted two players in the first round that made the Hall of Fame, along with Jim Rice.  If Clemens ever makes it, that would make three.

3.  Kristian Campbell.  Campbell has been playing much better in Worcester lately.  Perhaps he can make it back to the Majors some day yet.

4.  Payton Tolle.  Tolle has quickly become one of my favorite players.  He has been very good lately and has entered into the Rookie of the Year conversation, though I doubt he will win it.  Kevin McGonigle seems to have it locked up.

5.  Roman Anthony.  Hopefully Anthony will make it back for the stretch run.  Boston could use an offensive infusion.  

More Ceddannes and a Relic Trade

Time for another Ceddanne Rafaela update post. 

I grabbed these two off of Ebay.  I don't focus quite as much on Rafaela cards anymore, but every once in awhile, I will grab a bunch of lower-priced cards I need, just to pad the numbers.  I did seek out the team border parallel though after failing to land it in a trade.

Brayan Bello.  Here is a relic card I picked up in a trade.  It is my first relic of Brayan Bello.  Bello has had a strange year.  He has been horrible in the first inning in most of his starts.  So, Boston has been using him as a bulk reliever, and he has been terrific in that role.  It makes no sense, but here we are.

Topps put Rafaela in an insert set focused on great defensive players.  Rafaela of course won his first Gold Glove in 2025.  He looks to be well on his way to a second one this year.  

Topps Now: May 1, 2026

I have not done too many Topps Now cards this year yet.  For the first few months of the season, there was not much to be happy about.  

I admit I was kind of skeptical when Boston traded top pitching prospect Luis Perales to the Washington Nationals for Bennett.  But I figured the team knows more than I do.  And Bennett has been mostly great since coming up.  He made his Major League debut on May 1 against the Astros.  He pitched five innings for the win, giving up five hits and one run while walking two and striking out three.  The only run was a home run by Carlos Correa.

The Red Sox won the game 3-1 thanks to a three-run homer by Jarren Duran.  Roman Anthony had three hits as well.  Aroldis Chapman got the save.

First New Cards of a Couple Major New Red Sox (and a Bunch of Rafaelas)

I procrastinated too long on the Road to Opening Day sets.  Usually I figure they are going to be available right up until Opening Day.  That was not the case with the Red Sox set this year which sold out by the time I was going to buy it.  Presumably people were wanting to get the Roman Anthony cards which could be valuable cards if he lives up to his potential.  Unfortunately, that meant I had to try to find the singles on my own, and come to grips with the likelihood that I would not get the Anthony card.  I grabbed three of the singles from separate sellers.  All three will be in this post.

Willson Contreras.  Going into the offseason last year, it was clear Boston needed a big bat in their lineup.  I was hoping for Pete Alonso and was disappointed when Boston didn't really seem to engage with him.  I firmly believe he could have hit 50 home runs in Boston.  Instead, Boston acquired former catcher Contreras from the Cardinals in exchange for Yankee killer Hunter Dobbins and pitching prospects Yhoiker Fajardo and Blake Aita.  Contreras has actually been even better than Alonso this year.  He's had a few on-field issues, but has a 161 OPS+ and 23 home runs to date.  He is the thumper the team needed.

Here's a couple new Ceddanne Rafaela cards, including a relic card.  I don't get as many relics as I used to, but I still grab them depending on the player.  And Rafaela is a player I definitely go out and get.

Sonny Gray.  Another need for the team going into the offseason was some starting pitching depth and the team made another trade with the Cardinals for Gray, who has been a valuable starter for years with the A's, Reds, Yankees, Twins and Cardinals.  Gray cost Richard Fitts and Brandon Clarke.  He has also been terrific, leading the team in wins and ERA and being dependable every time out.

Here are several more Rafaela cards, including in the middle of the scan, the third Road to Opening Day card I grabbed.  Obviously I had to grab the Rafaela card.