Alex Verdugo talks future: 'What I plan on doing is going basically year to year'

Alex Verdugo is in a bad slump. They happen.

Is the Red Sox outfielder as bad as this current stretch - which has seen him hit just .127 (7-for-55) with a .477 OPS in July? Nope. Is he closer to his pre-All-Star break numbers (.290, .817)? Maybe.

All we have to go by when it comes to Verdugo is that he living life eight days out from the Trade Deadline right around his career averages of hitting .284 with a .773 OPS.

He is a winning player who has gotten better defensively and will likely be more of the solution than the problem in a batting order.

"I feel like my timing is off right now," Verdugo told WEEI.com. "I’m obviously grinding in the box a little bit. Working through some (expletive). I feel like there are some at-bats where I feel close, and there are other at-bats where I took a couple of steps back. It’s part of the grind. It’s part of the struggle. You don’t want to be too hard on yourself with it. I feel good and we know we’re going to get out of it and have a nice little finish."

What is uncertain when it comes to Verdugo? His future.

According the outfielder, he hasn't had contract extension talks with the Red Sox even though he will be eligible for free agency after the 2024 season.

"I always mess around with them about it, but I don’t think there has been anything serious so far. What I plan on doing is going basically year to year," he said. "It’s the easiest way to get your mindset where you do it year to year and you will get paid for whatever you do that year. If they want to talk, we can talk. I just joke around with them. There has been no seriousness to it. I’m just trying to make it fun.

"That’s all I can do. I will mess with Chaim (Bloom) and Eddie (Romero) and Sam (Kennedy) and John (Henry). I will mess with these guys by just telling them, ‘Hey man, extend me. I would love to stay here.’ It’s always just laughs. We haven’t really actually talked about anything. For me, it’s about keeping it light and having fun."

But as much as Verdugo wants to keep his contract situation in a happy place, it's impossible to ignore the realities of a player in his position.

While it seems unlikely the Red Sox would deal Verdugo at this year's Trade Deadline, such a scenario can't be totally ruled out. With the 27-year-old under control for the remainder of this season and all of 2024, his value in a trade - even with the recent struggles - will likely be at a peak.

Some parallels can be drawn to 2019 when the organization had serious internal discussions about putting Mookie Betts on the market heading into that Trade Deadline, with the outfielder having just one more year of control on his deal. Like this one, that Red Sox team was teetering on contention heading into the final days of July, clearly needing Betts if any run was to be had.

The difference in that situation - besides the significance of any return for Betts compared to Verdugo - was that the Red Sox had attempted to sign their star to an extension on multiple occasions. According to Verdugo, that hasn't been the case this time around.

There was also the case of David Price in 2014, where the Rays (with current Red Sox Chief of Baseball Operations in the front office) dealt the then-ace at the Deadline even though he had another year on his contract. Tampa Bay was 5 1/2 games out of a Wild Card spot when the three-way trade went down.

Verdugo has undoubtedly been a vital piece of the Red Sox' puzzle this season. But with the emergence of Jarren Duran in center field, and the return of Adam Duvall, there has been somewhat of a squeeze in terms of finding regular at-bats for all the outfielders.

For now, Verdugo - who will be arbitration-eligible this offseason after making $6.3 million this season - is solely focused on being an integral part of a successful 2023 Red Sox team.

How valuable is a good Verdugo to this team? They are 39-21 when he notches at least one hit. That doesn't paint the entire picture, but it does remind us how he can help fill up a canvas.

"I think we feel good. I think we’re in contention," Verdugo said. "We made the decision a lot tougher the last couple of weeks and have been making good strides. We’re starting to see some teams waver a little bit and it has given us an opportunity. It is starting to look like we’re a piece or two away from making a good run.

"(Shortstop Trevor Story) is a big name I feel a lot of people have overlooked, too. Then maybe one or two arms never hurt. Pitching is the name of the game and the better the pitching the better your chances in winning."