Nathan Eovaldi hopes this week won't be his last in a Boston Red Sox uniform.
The right-hander is one of several Boston Red Sox players who could be on the move before the Aug. 2 MLB trade deadline. Set to become a free agent after this season, Eovaldi would be a solid rental for a contending team looking for starting pitching help.
Tomase: As trade deadline nears, these Chaim Bloom comments are telling
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Eovaldi, however, wants Boston to be that contending team despite its recent rough patch.
“I love being over here with the Red Sox. I feel like we’re gonna put a team out there that’s gonna give us a chance to win ball games and ultimately the World Series every time we’re out.” Eovaldi told WEEI's Rob Bradford on Audacy's The Bradfo Sho. “I understand it’s a business and they’re gonna do what they have to do to continue to make the organization better.”
The Red Sox have a 50-50 record on the season and currently sit 3.5 games back in the American League Wild Card race. With a 7-17 record in July, some believe they'd be best served selling at the deadline with a focus on the future. That almost certainly would mean saying goodbye to Eovaldi.
Chaim Bloom doesn't sound like someone who is ready to hit the "sell" button just yet. The Red Sox chief baseball officer recently stated his goal is to "get this team to the postseason." Eovaldi hopes he's part of that effort over these next couple of months.
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“I love the organization here,” Eovaldi told Bradford. “I want to be a part of this organization forever.”
Eovaldi, 32, is 4-3 with a 4.43 ERA in 15 starts this season. The 2018 World Series champion finished fourth in AL Cy Young voting in 2021, going 11-9 in 32 starts with a 3.75 ERA and a league-leading 2.79 FIP.
Bloom and the Red Sox have until 6 p.m. ET on Aug. 2 to decide Eovaldi's fate.