SAN FRANCISCO -- In trouble all day against the Giants on a postcard-perfect Saturday afternoon at Oracle Park, James Paxton never flinched.

In the bottom of the fifth, with the bases loaded and two outs, he perfectly placed a 3-2 fastball on the low, outside corner of the strike zone that Michael Conforto stared at for strike three in Boston’s eventual 3-2 loss that snapped the Red Sox’s five-game win streak.

As Paxton returned to the dugout, he was greeted with an appropriate amount of hugs and handshakes.

The pitch that froze Conforto was Paxton’s 104th and final pitch of the outing. One could only speculate if it was his last pitch for the Red Sox.

Despite Boston’s recent surge into the thick of the postseason race, trading Paxton could make sense given how precious a commodity that quality starting pitching is leading into Tuesday’s Trade Deadline.

Paxton is aware of the rumors, but he said it didn’t impact him against the Giants.

“I don't think that's a thing at all,” Paxton said. “I wasn't thinking about that at all out there. I was just focused on helping our team win a ballgame.”

After tying the game on Justin Turner’s two-run single in the top of the ninth, the Sox lost the game on the first pitch in the bottom half when J.D. Davis belted Kenley Jansen’s cutter off the foul pole in left.

The defeat pushed the recently-hot Red Sox 2 1/2 games behind the Blue Jays and Astros in the American League Wild Card standings. But Boston is also just one game ahead of the Yankees for last place in the loaded AL East.

It is a somewhat tricky spot to be in. What should the front office do?

“You know, not my place to say,” Paxton said. “They’ll do their job. We'll do ours. We're just focused on winning ballgames.”

While Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom has the present and future to balance, veteran players are understandably keeping their eyes on the here and now.

“We can’t focus on [trade speculation],” Jansen said. “We’ve got to focus on our crowd in here. Lately, that’s who we are and how we play. We only have three starters and we’re throwing two bullpen [games] right now, and we’re still winning ballgames. That’s a hell of a job by everybody.

“We’re all doing a great job. Today’s a tough loss and tomorrow we have to win the series and have a happy flight.”

By Tuesday at the 6 p.m. ET Deadline, the Sox will know what their roster will look like for the stretch run.

“I think it will be great to get past that [Deadline] so that it’s not a thing that’s being talked about in the locker room and stuff like that,” Paxton said. “We feel good about where we're at right now.

“We got a great group of guys, and we're looking forward to making the push for the postseason.”

This past offseason, Paxton could have become a free agent. But he somewhat surprisingly exercised his $4 million player option because he appreciated the way Boston’s training staff stuck with him last season, when he wasn’t able to throw a pitch.

The 34-year-old hopes to complete this satisfying season -- in which he is finally healthy again -- with the Red Sox.

“I mean, that'd be great,” Paxton said. “I'd love to stay and fight for this team. Getting to the postseason is what we want to do here.”

Paxton is a free agent this offseason, so this could be an opportunity for Bloom to deal the lefty while his value is high for prospects and/or cost-controllable Major League players.

The Red Sox have three starters who are expected to be back in August -- Chris Sale, Tanner Houck and Garrett Whitlock -- which means it’s conceivable they could lose Paxton and still make it to the postseason.

While Paxton’s status going forward is uncertain, his performance for the club this season has been invaluable.

Against the Giants, Paxton allowed eight hits but just one run to go with two walks and five strikeouts.

In 13 starts for the Red Sox, Paxton is 6-2 with a 3.34 ERA.

“I mean, he's been great,” manager Alex Cora said. “He'll be ready for Friday.”

Ever the professional, there’s no question Paxton will be ready for Friday.

But it’s fair to wonder what uniform he will be wearing on Friday.