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The Red Sox are like an old watch that needs to be wound up; they are running out of time.

Currently they are sitting at 38-46, 8 games behind the Blue Jays in the AL East, and trailing the Yankees and Orioles, too.  

More than likely they are out of it, but you never know until the games are played, so they are one of those teams that could be buyers or sellers before the trade deadline.  

According to The Boston Globe, Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington thinks he's going to be looking for talent to make a run at the playoffs. But if Boston keeps dropping games, you can be assured he will rethink that plan.

So maybe the wise thing for management to do at this point is to look for players who have some trade value, but who are not vital parts of the team.

Enter A.J. Pierzynski.

The 37 year old catcher can still bat it around a bit, and he still has some skills behind the plate. Although he might not mean much in Boston, especially since they have stud prospect Christian Vazquez waiting to come up from triple A, he could make all the difference for a contender who is having trouble behind the plate.  

His slash line this year is .257/.288/.357 and he has 10 doubles and 4 homers.  He would definitely be an improvement in Los Angeles, where the Dodgers are 48-39 and trailing the Giants by 1 game.  They have a strong team, but not at the catcher position.  Currently no Dodger catcher has over a .220 average, or more than 2 homeruns.  

There has been some speculation that the Sox are interested in Andre Ethier or Matt Kemp, so they may work out a deal that includes one of the two players.  

Either way, Pierzynski is still a good player, and he could help someone else.  His services are just not needed in Boston anymore, no matter the direction the team takes at the trade deadline.