ESPN baseball analyst J.P. Ricciardi joined The Big Show on Friday afternoon to talk about the mentality of the Red Sox approaching the trade deadline, the chaos surrounding July 31, and the etiquette between general managers when trying to make a deal.

“I think it’s safe to say that the Red Sox are not going to trade Casey Kelly and any of their really, really good prospects because they know they’re a big part of what their future is going to be,” Ricciardi said. “I can see them doing some minor things, addressing the bullpen and maybe addressing a bat somewhere, but I don’t think you’re going to see them going above and beyond and doing something crazy.”

Ricciardi also touched on the probability of big-name players such as Prince Fielder, Jayson Werth, Dan Haren, and Roy Oswalt being moved over the next nine days.

Below are the highlights of the conversation. Visit The Big Show audio on demand page to hear the interview.

It’s interesting how some teams handle the pressure of the trade deadline different.

A younger team probably doesn’t handle it as well as a veteran club. I think the veterans have been through it before. They can even talk a young kid off the ledge and tell him, “Hey, all you have to do is just keep playing, you don’t control this. Just keep doing your job and concentrate on the things you can control, which is how you go and play.” I have to believe that some of the younger kids that hear their named mentioned, especially for the first time, are probably a little sketchy and a little nervous at this point. This is really the worst week. From Sunday until the 31st that last week, it’s not comfortable walking around guys. As much as your trying to assure guys certain things, there’s just a lot of tension around.

Have you ever been in a situation similar to the Red Sox where the trade deadline approaches but you don’t really know what you’re going to have as a team because of injuries?

I got a situation where we were really, really banged up but we were out of it because we were so banged up. In this case, they’re within striking distance. In a lot of ways, I think Theo [Epstein] has done an unbelievable job this year being able to have this club in contention with all the injuries they’ve sustained and still having to make a decision as to what to do and who to bring back. He knows who’s coming back faster than we do, so obviously he’s going to temper what he does based on who’s coming back, whether it’s quicker or whether it’s slower. He’s got a pretty good idea.

I think it’s safe to say that the Red Sox are not going to trade Casey Kelly and any of their really, really good prospects because they know they’re a big part of what their future is going to be. I can see them doing some minor things, addressing the bullpen and maybe addressing a bat somewhere, but I don’t think you’re going to see them going above and beyond and doing something crazy.

When you’re a team like the Red Sox, how difficult is it to weigh what’s good for the team presently and what’s good for the future in the way it’s going to play in that locker room if you stand pat?

Well, I think most of these guys they have on the club, the [Marco] Scutaro’s, the [Adrian] Beltre’s, the [J.D.] Drew’s, they’re veteran guys. They know there are so many things outside of Theo’s hands. He didn’t draw it up that this whole team would be banged up the way it is. He probably figured one or two guys would be nicked up and they could handle it internally, but you lose both your starting catchers. Getting [Jed] Lowrie back is a big boost for them. I think as they keep getting guys back, the majority of this club is such a veteran club that they understand that certain things are just out of everybody’s hands.

To go out and try to address every possible injury that happens, no one is able to do that, no one has enough resources to do that, and really no one has enough prospects to do that. Then you have to think about when these guys do come back, where the heck do you play everybody? I think the veterans on this club are smart enough to realize, especially the ones who have been hurt, they’ve seen Theo do some really, really good things at the trading deadline so they know he’s in their corner and they know what’s going on.

Is there an element of knowing whatever you do or don’t do that you’re going to have to articulate why you did what you did and defend your position?

I think we all know the market that Boston is. You’re damned if you do and you’re damned if you don’t. So you have to do what is best for the organization. The Red Sox fans should know that no one wants to win more than the ownership group and more than Theo and his entire staff. So I don’t think they ever have to put their head on the pillow at night, thinking that all of a sudden the Red Sox don’t care about winning because they do. But, there’s a right and a wrong way to go about it and to really make a move to sacrifice a lot of your future, wouldn’t be the right thing to do and I don’t think they would be happy about that.

Do you have a gameplan going in to the trade deadline and do you find you usually don’t deviate from that unless something surprises you?

There are always exceptions to every rule. The great Bill Parcells quote, “And I reserve the right to change my mind,” always comes into play. I think that’s in play with any prospect you deal with. You think about Casey Kelly has a chance to be number two or number three in your rotation, you have [Jose] Iglesias who has a chance to be an everyday shortstop player for a long time. You’re not going to move those cornerstone players because in the end, that’s what you’re going to be looking for going forward. You already have that in your system, so it would take an enormous opportunity from anybody to move those types of players. If you look through the game, the young players are the ones who aren’t being moved.

How does this week kind of evolve? Are you with the cell phone to your ear, blackberry in your hand 24/7, or do you already have trade partners lined up?

I think it’s all of those things. I think there’s a mystique out there that every second there’s a trade being talked about. It really doesn’t work like that. You have the parameters down for some of the teams you want to talk to, you always have your phone available and people are calling, but it’s not like your running a bookie joint and the phone’s ringing off the wall. You pretty much are under control. Where it gets crazy is the last few days when all of a sudden two or three of these things are coming together and you’re under time.

I mean last year we moved [Scott] Rolen at the deadline and our freaking fax machine wouldn’t work so we couldn’t send his OK sent in to the commissioner’s office because he had to sign off on the no-trade. We literally with 10 seconds to go got it into the commissioner’s office or the trade had to get a special conversation from the head commissioner to extend the time. There are a lot of crazy things that happen up to the last few minutes if you have a bunch of stuff going on. All these GMs are talking to each other, there’s a lot of stuff going, and next week is when you’re going to start seeing guys say we’re in, we’re out, and start pushing things to the forefront or to the backburner.

Let me ask you an etiquette thing among GMs. When you nearly are about to complete a deal but get a sweeter offer at the last second, how do you deal with that?

Honestly, you have to do what’s best for your club. If it means that you have to tell someone you have to jolt them at the altar, so be it. At this point, it’s kind of cutthroat time. I think everybody understands you do it in a professional manner. What I would always try to do is tell a club, “Listen, we got interest from another club to move this player to them, you have interest, we’re going to go with the best offer we get. Wherever the best offer is, we’re going to stay with it right up until the end.” You kind of lay the groundwork for that, but no one is happy when it happens, trust me. You still have to do the best deal you think for your club. If everything’s being equal, you probably go with the guy that you’ve put the most work in because you probably have a better background on that player.

Do you understand it from the other side or do you get over it?

I think some guys do and some guys don’t. I think your track record and your history of how you go about these things is really what determines if there are any lasting ramifications from it. If you’ve been a man of your word for the most part through all your deals and you explain to someone, “Hey I just got a better offer. What would you do in this situation?” Most guys lie and say, “Well I would the deal I want to do.” You just have to do what’s best and I think most of these guys are standup guys for the most part.

Is it more difficult with modern technology? You can shake with a guy and sleep on it and then in the morning it’s on ESPN.

You just broke rule number one: you never sleep on it. You have to get it done because you know what, there are so many things that can happen. I tell you what, no one sleeps on it. You’re up the whole night worrying about is someone going to come up along the line and give a better offer, are we doing the right thing? You’re better off just getting it done and I’ve found that waiting only brings on more questioning from everybody.

What is your opinion on whether or not Prince Fielder, Jayson Werth, or Dan Haren will be traded at the deadline?

I’m going to say 50-50 [on Fielder]. Not to sit on the fence but I think that’s a big one so I’m going to say 50-50. … I believe [Werth] is dealt. … I’m going to say no [on Haren]. I don’t think he’s dealt.

What about Roy Oswalt? He’s a guy who’s had some back problems and he’s made rumblings that he wants another year at $16 million. There’s a lot of baggage with him, isn’t there?

I think what [Oswalt] is doing is he knows he’s in the driver’s seat here, so obviously he’s kicking his spurs a little bit in saying that these are the things that he wants. When push comes to shove, if you have to tell him that he has to spend another year in Houston or you can go to St. Louis and pitch out that last year, I don’t think he’ll want to stay in Houston. I think there’s a little bit of maneuvering going on maybe for his agents and for him but I think in the end he’ll take a move to get him out of Houston because they’re not going to win for a couple years down there. Why not go somewhere where you got a chance to win, be in a great baseball environment, and take your chances after that?