Report: Red Sox looking for OF depth, asked Athletics about Canha

The Boston Red Sox are looking to address their outfield depth and recently made an unsuccessful pitch to acquire Mark Canha from the Oakland Athletics, according to Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle.

With the Athletics looking for starting pitching depth, the front office led by the brain trust of Billy Beane and David Forst discussed possible deals with Boston, per Slusser. In exchange, Dave Dombrowski and the rest of the Red Sox executives sought Canha, which never came to fruition.

Canha, 29, has spent time in all three outfield positions this season, with a positive defensive rating in the corner spots, per FanGraphs' metrics. Over 57 games, Canha owns a .250/.322/.452 slash line, hitting 13 percent better than the league average, according to wRC+. Canha is under team control and won't be eligible for free agency until after the 2021 campaign.

Forcing the A's to pursue pitching depth is their beleaguered rotation, with Brett Anderson, Trevor Cahill, Jharel Cotton, Daniel Gossett, and Andrew Triggs all currently on the disabled list.

As currently constituted, the Red Sox have the best outfield in baseball by offensive production. However, while Mookie Betts, Andrew Benintendi, and occasional outfielder J.D. Martinez do the heavy lifting, Jackie Bradley Jr. has been undoing some of that. Although his defensive value is worth noting, his 55 wRC+ ranks third-worst among all qualified outfielders this season.

While the A's scrounge to stay in contention, three games above .500 and 10 1/2 back of the division-leading Houston Astros, the Red Sox are fighting for a second straight AL East title, one win behind the New York Yankees.