Red Sox Rumors: What would a trade for Nationals RHP Jordan Zimmermann cost Boston?

The Washington Nationals are reportedly shopping dynamic starting pitcher Jordan Zimmermann, and the Boston Red Sox could very be one of the teams who will position themselves for a potential one-year rental via trade.

There is only one reported trade proposal on the books involving Zimmermann, in which the Nats proposed dealing him and SS Ian Desmond to the Seattle Mariners for eleven combined years of control over top pitching prospect Taijuan Walker and young shortstop Brad Miller.

The Red Sox aren't going to be in on Desmond, so it appears that would change the dynamic of any potential deal for Zimmermann. However, as Marc Normandin of SBNation indicates, that doesn't make it any clearer what the Nats would accept in return for the 28-year-old budding ace:

Nationals' general manager Mike Rizzo has made some fantastic trades over the years, and is known to ask for a serious return in exchange for his players. The Nationals might lower their demands because they know Zimmermann is gone in a year, but they also know how significant a 2015 season with him could be, so they don't actually have a reason to do so. The Red Sox don't want to give up their major prospects for five years of Cole Hamels, so giving up a major piece for a rental -- even one as talented as Zimmermann -- is unlikely. There is some middle ground here, where the Red Sox hand over Joe Kelly, Deven Marrero, and whichever legitimate low-level talent the Nationals want to be in their organization, but it seems, at this time, to be an unlikely conclusion to their discussions.

In short, there really is no exact answer to what Boston would have to give up for Zimmermann unless the two teams actually meet at the negotiating table sometime soon.

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