Could the Boston Red Sox end up moving on from a young player once expected to be a long-term core piece this winter?
In 2025, Kristian Campbell was the first of the "Big 3" to make his big league debut. He made the Red Sox's roster out of Spring Training and made the jump to the majors before both Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer. He looked great right away and inked an eight-year, $60 million extension as a result . But Campbell was demoted to Triple-A in June 2025 and hasn't been to the majors since. With the offseason here for Boston, there are a lot of questions for the team to answer, especially in the outfield. While breaking down all the various routes Boston can take, MassLive.com's Chris Cotillo dropped an interesting nugget of information about Campbell.
"Campbell could be a sneaky trade candidate, too, especially if the Red Sox decide to try to deal for a player on a big contract," Cotillo wrote. "If a team is going to take money back to facilitate a deal, why not do so with a talented young player instead of an albatross deal?"
Feb 17, 2026; Lee County, FL, USA; Boston Red Sox second baseman Kristian Campbell (28) poses for a photo during media day at JetBlue Park. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Campbell is in an intriguing spot. He's still just 24 years old. The upside is there. Again, Boston put him on the big league roster before Anthony and Mayer. Mayer isn't in the organization any longer, but at the time, these three were viewed as the franchise cornerstones of the Red Sox.
Campbell lived up to the hype right away as well. In his first 28 games in the majors, Campbell slashed .313/.420/.515 with a .935 OPS, four home runs and 12 RBIs. In 2026, he slashed .256/.383/.380 with eight home runs and 51 RBIs down in Triple-A in 109 games played. At one point, he looked like a future star for the organization. Now, his future with the team no longer is guaranteed.
When it comes to Campbell , there isn't a clear path to playing time in the majors, which makes this idea of him being a "sneaky trade candidate" make a lot of sense. In 2025, the Red Sox had Campbell moving all over the diamond. He broke into the majors at second base, but also got time in the outfield. Plus, he took some reps at first base after Triston Casas got hurt and Rafael Devers didn't move over to the position. In 2026, the Red Sox had a tighter scope on Campbell.
Rather than moving all over the place, Campbell got his playing time in the outfield in 2026. In the majors, Boston still has Jarren Duran , Anthony, Ceddanne Rafaela, Wilyer Abreu, Masataka Yoshida and Eli White, among others. If Boston opts to use Campbell as an outfielder moving forward, it's hard to see playing time coming for him, barring trades elsewhere on the roster.
If the Red Sox were to move Campbell back to the infield, there could be more of a path for him. Willson Contreras and Caleb Durbin will be at first base and third base. The middle infield is a question right now, although there are options. Trevor Story and Curtis Mead would be in line to start right now. Franklin Arias should be coming at some point early in 2027. If the Red Sox were to move on from Story - or even Mead - there's a way you could put together a middle infield with Arias, Campbell and either Story or Mead as the designated hitter.
In either scenario, there's not a clear path for Campbell right now. This winter the Red Sox need to add power. If they do so by going out and adding a big-name player in the trade market - like Bryce Harper or Elly De La Cruz , among others - including Campbell would make a lot of sense. He doesn't have a clear role right now and he'd still be a very valuable trade chip at 24 years old.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/mlb/red-sox/onsi as Red Sox Insider Floats Surprising Kristian Campbell Trade Idea .
