How Craig Breslow Pictures Quinn Priester Fitting In With Red Sox

BOSTON — As the clock continues ticking before Tuesday’s 6 P.M. ET MLB trade deadline, the Red Sox (again) struck a deal, this time acquiring pitcher Quinn Priester from the Pirates in exchange for minor league prospect Nick Yorke.

That marked the third trade first-year chief baseball officer Craig Breslow pulled off as Boston approaches its most critical stretch of the season, which could easily make or break its postseason chances. Breslow emphasized what the front office envisions Priester bringing to the table in making the switch from the Pirates — a teeter-tottering .500 club in the National League — to the Red Sox.

“In Quinn we see a young starting pitcher with a ton of potential,” Breslow said after the swap was finalized on Monday, per MLB.com’s Ian Browne. “He throws strikes and misses barrels and keeps the ball on the ground which is a good place to start when seeking rotation pieces. It hurts to give up a player as talented as Nick but we saw upper level middle infielders as an area where we have a lot of good players.”

Priester, 23, has shown flashes of role flexibility throughout this season. He’s logged six starts and four relief appearances with the Pirates, pitching to a 5.04 ERA with a 2-6 record in 44 2/3 total innings. The right-hander made his big league debut last season in Pittsburgh, five years after the Pirates selected him 18th overall out of high school in the 2019 draft. While it’s unknown how the Red Sox intend to utilize Priester specifically with depth needed in the rotation and bullpen, the organization does have time to develop the youngster with only 20 total games of MLB experience under his belt.

Boston also still has time to continue making calls across the league, and Red Sox manager Alex Cora assured everyone that the franchise’s front office hasn’t taken a break from doing whatever it takes to improve.

“They’re working. They’re working hard,” Cora said before Monday night’s series opener against the Mariners at Fenway Park. “It’s part of it, right? There are so many teams in the mix. … When you look around, not much has happened, right? We just gotta be patient and we’ll see, but they’re working hard. They are.”