Red Sox Rival Expected To Be 'Aggressive' At Trade Deadline

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The Boston Red Sox are bracing for a a new beast of the American League East. The Tampa Bay Rays (36-23) have the best record in the AL and a one-game lead over the New York Yankees in the division.

More than 1/3 of the way through the MLB season, it's clear the Rays are for real, which could prompt the club's front office to go all-in before the Aug. 3 trade deadline.

" Tampa Bay has been aggressive in past years when they have been legitimate AL East contenders (as opposed to targeting a Wild Card berth), so the Rays’ impressive start could have president of baseball operations Erik Neander thinking big this summer," MLB.com's Mark Feinsand reports.

"In past years, he’s traded for Nelson Cruz, tried to trade for Kris Bryant and even considered a move for Shohei Ohtani, so you can’t rule anything out – a trade for (Tarik) Skubal, perhaps? – for this creative front office," Feinsand adds. "The Rays have a very deep farm system from which to deal, so any player that could help them take aim at a division title could be in play if they continue playing at this level."

Earlier this week, The Athletic's Jim Bowden ranked only the Los Angeles Dodgers ahead of the Rays as trade deadline partners for Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal, with the two-time American League Cy Young Award winner poised to be a free agent following the season.

"The Rays are my sleeper team to land Skubal as team president Erik Neander is one of the smartest executives in the game and has a long history of making stealth attempts to acquire players like Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman," Bowden wrote.

"The Rays’ farm system is loaded and they could get creative in making an offer, starting with outfielder Theo Gillen, their top prospect, and right-handers Anderson Brito and Ty Nichols," Bowden added.

"Then they can finish the proposal with shortstop Victor Valdez. A strong package of these four prospects would really bode well for the future of the Tigers and, at the same time, give the Rays a legitimate chance to get back to the World Series," Bowden concluded.

FanGraphs gives the Rays a 20.3% chance of winning the division, 82.5% chance of making the playoffs and 3.9% chance of winning the World Series.

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