Sam Kennedy: No one 'untouchable' on last-place Red Sox

Boston Red Sox president and CEO Sam Kennedy acknowledged Thursday that the team's front office has talked with other clubs about trades prior to the Aug. 31 deadline, and that no player is off the table.

"Chaim (Bloom), Brian O'Halloran, Raquel (Ferreira), and Eddie (Romero) have been already engaged with teams," Kennedy said, according to WEEI's Ryan Hannable. "Teams are trying to position themselves for a postseason run here. We gotta get going. We know we're 6-12, it's been an awful start and no one is proud of it.

"It's frustrating, but at the same time, if you can run off three or four wins, all of a sudden you're two or three games back in the American League East and anything can happen."

He added: "We still have a group of young core players you'd like to see with the Red Sox for a long, long time, but we'd never label anybody untouchable, just given the fact that sometimes, to retool and restructure for the future, you do have to sometimes make difficult decisions, as you saw with the Mookie (Betts) transaction."

Jackie Bradley Jr., Mitch Moreland, Martin Perez, Kevin Pillar, and Brandon Workman are all on expiring contracts, while star slugger J.D. Martinez can opt out following the 2020 campaign.

The Red Sox are just two years removed from winning their ninth World Series title in franchise history.