Morning Sports Update
“This seems like Boston really pushed some chips in to the point that people in the industry are wondering how they ended up with this being the package.”
Adley Rutschman playing for the Orioles in June. AP Photo/Daniel Kucin Jr.
August 4, 2026 | 11:31 AM
3 minutes to read
Contextualizing the Red Sox deal for Adley Rutschman: On Monday, the Red Sox front office (led by Craig Breslow) orchestrated a series of trades, centering around the high-profile acquisition of catcher Adley Rutschman from the Orioles for fellow catcher Carlos Narváez and prospects Anthony Eyanson, Kyson Witherspoon, Enddy Azocar, and a player to be named later/cash considerations.
The reaction to the trade, and the price the Red Sox paid, has been mixed. While most of the early trade grades were understanding (and in some cases praiseworthy) of the aggressive approach Boston took amid a playoff chase, ESPN MLB analyst Kiley McDaniel had a different view.
Asked what the Red Sox gave up in order to trade for Rutschman, McDaniel didn’t hold back.
“I can’t tell you what I said about this trade. We’d have to get another seven-seconds – maybe 14 seconds — of delay,” joked McDaniel. “This is a wild overpay on the face of it.
“Now you can do all the caveats of, ‘Well, these teams know these players better than anybody else. Who knows how this is going to work out? Maybe they know some stuff we don’t know? Maybe they’re being aggressive,” McDaniel said of the Red Sox front office.
“But this seems like Baltimore had a high price on Rutschman. The Red Sox really needed to add a power hitter after losing [Curtis] Mead,” he added.
Boston, which despite its recent success remains below the league average in many offensive categories, experienced some bad luck when Mead (recently also added via trade) got hurt almost immediately after joining the Red Sox.
In the end, McDaniel thinks Eyanson, Witherspoon, and Azocar have a chance to be legit MLB players.
“They got three real guys, plus a big league catcher for a guy in Rutschman whose value went down last year, [but] has come back this year,” said McDaniel.
“This seems like Boston really pushed some chips in to the point that people in the industry are wondering how they ended up with this being the package.”
“This seems like Boston really pushed some chips in, to the point where some people in the industry are wondering how they ended up with this being the package.”@kileymcd breaks down reactions to the Adley Rutschman trade 👀 pic.twitter.com/FOoPyW7o3G
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) August 3, 2026
Scores and schedules:
The Red Sox begin a three-game series against the White Sox at Fenway Park this evening starting at 7:10 p.m.
On Saturday, the Revolution host the Houston Dynamo at 4:30 p.m.
And on Sunday, Legacy FC play the Portland Thorns at Centreville Bank Stadium in Pawtucket at 4 p.m.
More from Boston.com:
Coco Crisp’s theory on why Boston fans embraced him: The former Red Sox outfielder said that fans were never bad to him, but that a specific incident in his time with the team helped build credibility.
Local soccer club news: Portland Hearts of Pine announced plans to build a soccer-specific stadium.
A new home for the Soccer Club of Maine 🏟️
We’re thrilled to announce we have entered into an agreement to acquire land at Cassidy Point in Portland, where the club plans to build a 9,000–11,000 seat soccer-specific stadium that will serve as a permanent home for the club’s… pic.twitter.com/xz7VBLma3u
— Portland Hearts of Pine (@hearts_sc) August 4, 2026
On this day: In 1945, the Red Sox defeated the Nationals 15-4. The win was highlighted by utility player Tom McBride, who went 3-for-6 and batted in seven runs. Six of his RBIs came in one inning (the top of the fourth) when — as a result of Boston batting around its lineup — McBride belted consecutive bases-clearing hits (and a triple and a double). The tally of six RBIs in one inning tied an MLB record, and would stand until Fernando Tatis broke it in 1999.
Daily highlight: Aces guard Chelsea Gray pulled off a fantastic behind-the-back pass that led to a Jackie Young bucket in Las Vegas’ win over the Atlanta Dream on Monday.
Hayden Bird
Hayden Bird is a sports staff writer for Boston.com, where he has worked since 2016. He covers all things sports in New England.
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