Last year the Red Sox were buyers at the trade deadline, but even in the moment it was clear the club wasn’t exactly going all in.

Left-hander James Paxton had just been designated for assignment by the Dodgers. Catcher Danny Jansen had a sub-.700 OPS at the time of his arrival, and relievers Luis Garcia and Lucas Sims both had mid-leverage ceilings at best. None were productive upon their arrival or were of any help pulling the club out of its second-half tailspin.

This year, Craig Breslow needs to think bigger.

The Red Sox entered the All-Star break as the hottest team in baseball, finishing the first half on a 23-10 stretch punctuated by a 10-game winning streak. They are now firmly in the AL Wild Card picture and if things keep up it’s not crazy to imagine they could contend for an AL East title too.

But the only way that’s going to happen is if Breslow fortifies the roster, and adding a couple of castoffs and lottery tickets isn’t going to cut it.

To his credit, Breslow seems to understand the situation and has taken an appropriate stance publicly. Even since the Rafael Devers trade he’s been adamant that the Red Sox will be buyers and in his recent public comments has expressed a desire to add high-impact players who can meaningfully move the needle.

If he follows through then there’s no reason why the Red Sox shouldn’t be among the sport’s most aggressive teams ahead of the July 31 deadline. What might that look like? Here are a couple of needs the Red Sox should address to best position themselves for a second half run.

A No. 2 starter

The Red Sox have a legitimate ace in Garrett Crochet, and Brayan Bello and Lucas Giolito both pitched brilliantly over the last month leading into the break. All three would undoubtably be in Boston’s playoff rotation, but does the club have anyone else it can trust with the season on the line?

Walker Buehler has playoff experience but also a 6.12 ERA. Richard Fitts is a rookie, Tanner Houck has been a mess, Kyle Harrison has struggled in Triple-A and Patrick Sandoval has yet to complete his recovery from Tommy John surgery.

If this team is going to reach its full potential, Breslow needs to bring in another top tier arm.

A lot of speculation has surrounded Minnesota right-hander Joe Ryan, who was just named an All-Star after posting a 2.72 ERA in the first half. Ryan would be a perfect No. 2 to pair with Crochet at the top of the rotation, and he also has two years of team control remaining beyond this year, potentially making him a building block for the future as well. The downside to that is the Twins would no doubt demand a higher price for those extra years, as the Washington Nationals would if the Red Sox attempted a similar deal for All-Star lefty MacKenzie Gore.

If the price for Ryan or Gore proved prohibitive, perhaps a rental would work.

The Arizona Diamondbacks have two pending free agents the Red Sox might want to look into. Zac Gallen has had a disappointing platform season but prior to this year consistently ranked among the best pitchers in the game. He’s posted three top-10 Cy Young finishes since 2020 and has pitched in the World Series, though his 5.40 ERA in the first half and putrid advanced metrics would have to give any contender pause.

Then there is Merrill Kelly, who has been much more effective this season with a 3.34 ERA in 20 starts over the first half. Kelly is 36 and doesn’t have the same All-Star ceiling as the others mentioned, but he’s also consistently delivered mid-rotation production throughout his career and boasts a 2.25 career ERA in four postseason starts.

A power-hitting 1B

The tandem of Romy Gonzalez and Abraham Toro has exceeded expectations since Triston Casas was lost for the season with a knee injury, but after a brilliant start Toro batted .211 over the last 27 games entering the All-Star break.

If there was one spot the Red Sox could afford to upgrade, first base would be it.

Baltimore’s Ryan O’Hearn, Arizona’s Josh Naylor and Milwaukee’s Rhys Hoskins would all be worthwhile rental targets, though Hoskins is on the IL, making a potential acquisition comparable to when the Red Sox added

an injured Kyle Schwarber at the ’21 deadline. Tampa Bay’s Yandy Diaz is another intriguing possibility. The Rays have never shied away from intra-division deals and he’s due to make $12 million next season, an affordable price for Boston but perhaps not for the low-payroll Rays.

Given the uncertainty surrounding Casas’ long-term availability, adding a rental or a two-year player like Diaz would probably make the most sense for the Red Sox. But if the club wanted to take a really big swing, it might be worth at least making a call to Atlanta about Matt Olson. The three-time All-Star still has four years left on his eight-year, $168 million deal but the Braves have been one of MLB’s biggest disappointments, entering the break fourth in the NL East behind even the Miami Marlins.

Bullpen help

The Red Sox have already reshaped their bullpen over the past month, adding Jordan Hicks as part of the Rafael Devers trade and Jorge Alcala in an under-the-radar deal that has so far paid off. They’ve also brought back Chris Murphy from the 60-day IL, should eventually get Justin Slaten back and could potentially shift a couple of depth starters to the bullpen down the stretch as well.

Still, you can never have too many high-leverage arms.

The two prizes of this year’s reliever crop are Minnesota’s Jhoan Duran and Cleveland’s Emmanuel Clase. Duran and Clase are two of baseball’s best closers, with Duran ranking as the game’s hardest thrower while Clase is a three-time All-Star who finished third in last year’s Cy Young vote. Besides fortifying the back of Boston’s bullpen, both also come with additional years of team control, which would give the Red Sox a potential successor to Aroldis Chapman, who is 37 years old and a pending free agent.

Other possible targets include Tampa Bay closer Pete Fairbanks, Baltimore’s Felix Bautista and St. Louis’ Ryan Helsley, all of whom are serving as closer for their current teams. A reunion with former Red Sox set-up man Chris Martin, who has a 2.20 ERA with Texas, wouldn’t be a bad option, either.

Potential trade chips

Who would the Red Sox give up in any potential trade? One obvious area the club could draw from is its surplus of outfielders. As of now the Red Sox have more starting-caliber outfielders than they have room for in the lineup, meaning most days one of Jarren Duran, Ceddanne Rafaela, Wilyer Abreu, Roman Anthony or Masataka Yoshida will be coming off the bench.

That’s not sustainable over the long haul and understandably there has been lots of speculation one of the outfielders could be moved — with most of the attention falling on Duran. But throughout the Red Sox recent hot streak the club has juggled everyone’s playing time, and if Rafaela occasionally plays second base it’s conceivable the Red Sox could choose to lean into their depth and save the big shakeup for the offseason.

Maybe Duran winds up being dealt, maybe not, but either way if the Red Sox swing a trade or two, they’ll mostly draw from their farm system.

Boston’s top prospects who could realistically be traded are infielder Franklin Arias and outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia, who rank as the club’s No. 2 and 3 prospects, respectively, behind Anthony, according to MLB Pipeline, following Marcelo Mayer’s recent graduation from the rankings.

Garcia participated in the Futures Game over All-Star week and has been outstanding since his May promotion to Triple-A, but if the ultimate goal is for Anthony, Rafaela and Abreu to serve as the outfield of the future, then Garcia’s path could be blocked. Arias is still only 19 and has loads of potential, but the Red Sox have Mayer and plenty of other middle infield prospects coming up too, which could make Arias expendable.

As for pitchers, Boston’s best arms who could conceivably be dealt are left-hander Connelly Early and righty David Sandlin, both of whom have been dominant at Double-A. One dark horse is 18-year-old righty Yhoiker Fajardo, who was acquired in the Cam Booser trade this past winter and dominated the Florida Complex League. He’s since been promoted to Low-A Salem and now ranks among the youngest players in all of the full-season affiliated minor leagues.

Another group to watch is the club’s pending class of Rule 5 eligible prospects, who will need to be added to the 40-man roster this winter to be protected from the Rule 5 draft. Breslow drew heavily from this group ahead of last year’s deadline, and this year’s class includes outfielders Miguel Bleis and Allan Castro, corner infielder Blaze Jordan and pitchers Jedixson Paez, Isaac Coffey and Tyler Uberstine, just to name a few.

Is anyone untouchable? It’s unlikely any of the pitchers Boston has drafted since last summer will go, and certainly not Payton Tolle, who has already emerged as one of the game’s top left-handed pitching prospects. Kristian Campbell is also a lock to remain. This has been a rocky season but the Red Sox have already invested heavily in his future and wouldn’t want to trade him when his value is at its lowest.

Besides, the Red Sox have more than enough other talent to check off every item on their wish list.