The Scores Report - The National Sports Blog » Boston Red Sox

Martinez wants to stay in Boston, but won’t talk contract during the season

Anthony Stalter — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 23:40:32 +0000

Victor Martinez would prefer to stay with the Red Sox past 2010, but he isn’t open to negotiating a contract extension with the team during the season.

From the Boston Herald:

“As soon as the season starts, I don’t want to be talking about numbers or be talking about something that can distract me from the game and distract my teammates,” Martinez said. “That’s the last thing I want with this great team they’ve put together. Maybe, who knows, they come to me in spring training with something.

“Honestly, I’m all open now until the season starts. As soon as the season starts, I barely talk to my mom.”

While I fully endorse young men talking to their moms as much as possible, I love V-Mart’s attitude and take on this topic. Players should focus on their game during the season and not on their contract. I understand a player’s contract is highly important, but that doesn’t mean a player shouldn’t fulfill his promise for the final year of his current deal just because he hasn’t been offered an extension.

Too many players gripe about their contract during the season and become a distraction. Good to see Martinez won’t be one of them.

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Red Sox reach agreement with Adrian Beltre

Anthony Stalter — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 19:30:59 +0000

According to a report by ESPN.com, the Red Sox have reached a tentative agreement with free agent third baseman Adrian Beltre on a one-year, guaranteed $10 million contract.

The deal will pay Beltre a base salary of $9 million in 2010. It includes a $5 million player option for 2011 and a $1 million buyout, and is contingent upon Beltre passing a physical exam, the sources said.

Beltre, a 12-year veteran, batted .265 with eight home runs and 44 RBIs for the Mariners last season, in which he was limited to 111 games due to injuries. From 2006-08, his average numbers were .270, 25 homers, 88 RBIs and 149 games played.

The BoSox had to do something to boost their offense after losing Jason Bay to the Mets via free agency. Although he struggled in 2007, Beltre remains a solid defender, but he hit a very sub par .265 last season while battling a testicle injury. He might benefit in hitting in a better lineup coming over from Seattle, but it was probably wise that Boston only invested in a one-year deal.

Report: Two things keeping a Bay-Boston reunion from happening

Anthony Stalter — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 23:18:20 +0000

According to the Boston Globe, there are two distinct things that are keeping the Red Sox from bringing free agent outfielder Jason Bay back to Beantown.

Could Bay return to the Red Sox? It’s not inconceivable, according to a major league source, who said it would take two things to happen. 1. Bay would likely have to accept a backloaded contract, which would help the Sox remain under the $170 million payroll threshold for avoiding the luxury tax; and 2. the Sox would have to extend their budget, after they gave a two-year, $15.5 million deal to Mike Cameron.

Then, where would they play Cameron? He could be used against lefthanded pitching to spell Jacoby Ellsbury and J.D. Drew, or the Sox could use Ellsbury in an Adrian Gonzalez deal. But with Mike Lowell back in the fold after he failed his physical with the Rangers, the Sox have less wiggle room in their payroll and on their roster.

Call it a gut feeling, but I don’t think Bay will return to Boston. The BoSox don’t like to budge when it comes to their payroll decisions, which is why Johnny Damon played the last couple years in the Bronx instead of in Baaaston. In the end, another club will step up and pay Bay what he wants and I think he’ll cash in and move on.

Plus, as the article notes, the Red Sox already have Cameron to play left field so they’ve probably moved on. I think the only reason why the Bay-to-Boston rumors are staying afloat is because no other team has stepped up and signed him yet and it doesn’t sound like he’s even close to striking a deal with another club.

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Red Sox “working hard” to obtain Adrian Gonzalez

Anthony Stalter — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 17:27:36 +0000

Even after the signings of free agents John Lackey and Mike Cameron, the Red Sox aren’t satisfied this winter. According to FOX Sports.com, the BoSox are “working hard” to obtain Adrian Gonzalez in a trade with the Padres.

The addition of Lackey will give the Red Sox the flexibility to trade right-hander Clay Buchholz, who likely would be the centerpiece of any package for Gonzalez. Likewise, the addition of Cameron will give them the flexibility to trade outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury.

The Padres would be tempted to move Gonzalez if they could get Buchholz and Ellsbury in the same deal, sources say. However, the Red Sox would be very reluctant to include both, according to another source.

A separate person familiar with Boston’s position said the team is becoming comfortable with the idea of trading Buchholz. But the source expressed doubt that the Red Sox would include outfielder Ryan Westmoreland or pitcher Casey Kelly in the deal; at present, the Padres are trying to obtain one of the two high-level prospects.

This is a deal that may never happen because Boston won’t part with the necessary pieces in order to acquire a big bat like Gonzo. San Diego wants pitching and top-level prospects so that they can compete in a few years. Plus, Gonzo is a fan favorite so they’re not going to trade him without getting a haul in return.

Boston better be ready to part with a couple of key prospects if they want the San Diego slugger.

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Report: Angels enter Roy Halladay derby

Anthony Stalter — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 21:02:17 +0000

According to Jon Heyman of SI.com, the Angels are interested in Blue Jays’ ace Roy Halladay, but only if he’s interested in agreeing to a long-term deal with them.

The Yankees, Red Sox and perhaps Phillies are among other teams interested in what’s expected to be a select group in the bidding for the Blue Jays superstar.

Executives with multiple teams interested say they believe Halladay’s value is enhanced if he’s willing to sign on long term, and that Toronto’s take will be diminished greatly if Halladay prefers to wait to sign until he becomes a free agent after the year. But the Angles are at least one team that will walk away from talks without a long-term deal in hand.

Halladay has a full no-trade clause and is known to want to go to a perennial winner. He is also believed to strongly prefer a team that trains in Florida, as his winter home is just outside Tampa. Halladay rejected the Rangers last year but could be slightly more open to the Angels. Halladay’s agent, Greg Landry, has said they will consider opportunities on a “case-by-cases basis.”

According to Heyman, Toronto GM Alex Anthopoulos has said that he’s willing to consider trading Halladay within the division, which makes little sense. For a new GM to want to make a division opponent better sounds ridiculous, but if he receives a package that is too good to be true then he might have little choice.

If Anthopoulos is willing to deal within the division, the Yankees make sense. They obviously have the money to make Halladay happy long-term and the Bombers train in Tampa. But whether or not they have the package to entice Toronto is a whole other story.

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Report: Bay wants to be a Mariner

Anthony Stalter — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 16:27:15 +0000

According to Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times, free agent outfielder Jason Bay wants to be a Seattle Mariner next season.

I’m hearing that Bay has been telling his former Pirates teammates he’d stand on his head and sing on E. Martinez Way to play for M’s.

The rumor would make sense given that Bay is from British Columbia, which is a Canadian province north of Seattle. A deal would make sense for both sides given the M’s lack of offensive firepower.

That said, if the Red Sox truly want him back than they’ll easily outbid Seattle for Bay’s services. The free agent will have to weigh the prospect of playing closer to home against the financial gains that he’ll receive if he re-ups with the BoSox.

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Are the Red Sox targeting Holliday over Bay?

Anthony Stalter — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 18:00:26 +0000

According to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, the Red Sox may be more interested in outfielder Matt Holliday than Jason Bay.

Under baseball’s warped draft-pick compensation system, a high-revenue team that exchanges one Type A free agent for another actually nets an extra pick — a supplemental choice between the first and second rounds.
Oh, but this gets better.

If the Sox lose Bay and sign both Holliday and free-agent shortstop Marco Scutaro, they not only will receive the same number of selections, but also might end up in better draft positions.

Signing Holliday would cost the Sox their first-round pick. Signing Scutaro, a lower-ranking free agent, would cost them their second- round selection.

But, if the Sox lose Bay after offering him salary arbitration, they will gain two picks — a likely first-rounder and the sandwich pick.

The only ways the Sox would wind up with a second-rounder for Bay is if (a) the team that signed him ranked in the bottom 15 of the overall standings last season or (b) the team that signed him added a higher- ranking free agent as well.

Well, isn’t this an interesting web that Boston is weaving. If Theo Epstein can land a Type A outfielder on top of landing two draft picks then he’ll set up the Red Sox for both the present and future.

But would they be making the right decision in going with Holliday over Bay? Holliday was fantastic as soon as he got to St. Louis, but he had a hard time adjusting to American League pitching when he first got to Oakland and could struggle long-term in Boston. On the flip side, Bay has already proven that he can hit in both leagues and appears willing to stay in Boston for the right price.

Epstein has some big decisions to make over the next month or two.

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