Craig Breslow just pulled the trigger on his eighth July trade in three years as the Red Sox chief baseball officer, acquiring 25-year-old infielder Curtis Mead from the Nationals late Saturday night for starting pitcher Connelly Early. This deal went down with the Aug. 3 deadline just around the corner, and honestly, the chatter is already wild, calling it an “overpay.” But hold up, this move could be way more interesting than the early takes suggest.
Curtis Mead Is Headed to Fenway With Some Serious Tools
Mead, a former Baseball America Top 100 prospect, is set to make his Red Sox debut Monday against the Athletics in Sacramento, and the plan is to plug him in at second base. You gotta look at his numbers this year to get the full picture, because they’re legit: 17 homers, 17 doubles, and a flat-out impressive .500 slugging percentage. This dude isn’t just swinging wildly; he’s doing a great job avoiding pitches outside the strike zone, drawing walks, and getting on base at a high clip. The stats back it up, too: he’s in the 85th percentile for expected weighted on-base percentage (.358), 84th percentile for whiff percentage (17.8%), and 82nd percentile for walk percentage (11.9%). His ability to pull the ball in the air as a right-handed hitter makes him an intriguing match for Fenway Park, a place known for pulled doubles and high slugging for righties. On the flip side, Connelly Early, the pitcher traded away, has the potential for a middle-to-back of the rotation spot for the next decade, but his peripheral numbers this year haven’t been great, sitting in the 39th percentile for expected ERA (4.35) and 33rd percentile for hard-hit percentage (40.9%).
Breslow’s Deadline History Has Been a Rough Ride
Let’s be real, Breslow’s track record with deadline deals “isn’t great” so far. Guys like Dustin May, Luis García, Lucas Sims, Danny Jansen, and James Paxton? They just didn’t work out. His offseason moves, picking up Garrett Crochet, Sonny Gray, Willson Contreras, Jake Bennett, and Caleb Durbin, have been “much better,” but July’s been a different story. The trade for Dustin May on July 31, 2025, from the Dodgers is the biggest headache. Not only did May do “little to help Boston” with his 5.40 ERA and .307 opponents batting average in just six outings before hitting the injured list, but Breslow shipped off two intriguing outfield prospects in James Tibbs III and Zach Ehrhard. Those two are absolutely raking in Triple-A this season! Tibbs, 23, is batting .285 with a .408 on-base percentage, a .538 slugging percentage, and a .946 OPS, crushing 21 homers and driving in 72 runs. Ehrhard, also 23, is hitting .286 with a .392 on-base percentage. You can see why fans are a little on edge.
So, here we are, with Breslow “likely not done” before next Monday’s deadline. Curtis Mead’s debut is Monday against the Athletics. Can Mead live up to his prospect hype and those intriguing current numbers to make this trade finally a winner for Breslow? We’re about to find out.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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