Breslow: Teams reaching out to Red Sox about Verdugo

Alex Verdugo's future in Boston is again up in the air.

Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow revealed Wednesday that teams have contacted him about potentially trading for the 27-year-old outfielder during the offseason's early stages.

"His fit is as an everyday right fielder, who's playing Gold Glove-caliber defense and can impact the ball on the offensive side as well," Breslow said, according to Sean McAdam of MassLive. "We've had some conversations with him. It feels like he's committed to performing as best as he possibly can. Obviously, he's a guy that other teams have kind of reached out on, given the situation. But I don't think we're in a position to commit to anything.

"We have to look at every opportunity and every interaction with another club or with agent as a chance to make the team better, and where that lands, we'll see."

The Red Sox acquired Verdugo from the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2020 as part of the blockbuster Mookie Betts trade. He's been a centerpiece of the team over the last few years, helping Boston reach the ALCS in 2021 and earning a Gold Glove nomination in right field this year.

But his offensive numbers haven't quite met expectations throughout his career. Verdugo's never hit more than 13 homers in a season, and a prolonged second-half slump sunk his 2023 slash line to .264/.324/.421. His strikeout rate also increased by over 2% this year, and manager Alex Cora benched him twice - first for not running hard in May and then for arriving late at the ballpark.

Verdugo said in October that this season left a "bad taste in the mouth."

Boston reportedly put the Arizona native on the block ahead of this year's trade deadline but didn't find an offer to its liking. The Houston Astros and New York Yankees tried to acquire him in late July, with the Yankees offering pitcher Clarke Schmidt to their archrivals, McAdam reports.

Verdugo is entering his final season of arbitration and will be a free agent next winter. MLB Trade Rumors projects him to earn $9.2 million in 2024.