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While the Yankees are the reigning World Champions, it seems that everyone wants to play in Boston next season. The Red Sox just keep acquiring talent, and unlike some of their deals in the past, seem to be doing so rather responsibly this time. Obviously the signing of John Lackey is the most significant for the Red Sox, both in value to the roster as a top-flight starter and in the prohibitive cost of $85 million over five years.
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↵There was no Boston discount there, as Lackey surely got his full market value. But adding veteran outfielder Mike Cameron to replace Jason Bay and yesterday's news that Boston signed Adrian Beltre to fill the impending void left by Mike Lowell makes a lot of sense, especially if you break down the financials. David Cameron from the blog USS Mariner had the line of the night:↵
Beltre Latest Free Agent To Hop On the Boston Discount Train
↵↵⇥Red Sox get Beltre + Cameron for roughly same price as Jason Bay. This is why Red Sox are good and Mets are not.↵↵We noted when Bay signed with the Mets for $66 over four years and a fifth-year vesting option of somewhere in the neighborhood of $17 million that the Red Sox did offer a deal, but one not as lucrative as the Mets (likely in hopes Bay would sign elsewhere and the Sox could say “we tried”.) Cameron’s deal was somewhere in the two-year, $15.5 million range, ostensibly getting a player of Cameron’s caliber for half the contract length and 50 cents on the dollar it would have cost to keep Bay. What’s most surprising is that the Red Sox were able to take that loose change and procure one of the top free-agent third basemen in Beltre for $9 million in 2010 with a player option for $5 million in 2011. ↵↵Obviously the market wasn’t as fruitful as Beltre (and agent Scott Boras) had hoped for the Gold Glover, but the Sox making this deal for around $10 million when Beltre likely would have gotten more than that from Seattle had he agreed to arbitration – and for less money than Lowell will be making to sit on the bench behind Beltre if the Sox can’t find another trade partner – further illustrates the Red Sox seem to be doing things more responsibly this offseason. ↵
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↵If you factor in the Boston Herald report that Beltre took less money to go to Boston, it makes the Red Sox look even smarter:↵
↵↵⇥Beltre turned down more money from at least two teams – he had a four-year offer early in free agency and then a three-year deal for roughly the same annual value as the deal the Red Sox offered – but he chose Boston with an eye on having a big year for a contender and then hitting the market again next year.↵↵Now, the fact that this report does not mention the other teams involved smacks of Boras spin – there is no way in the world that a Boras client would turn down a multiyear deal to take a one-year with an option if the money was the same. Beltre’s player option reportedly turns into a $1 million buyout if he declines, so it actually makes his deal with the Red Sox a one-year deal for $10 million with the security of a two-year deal at seven million per year. Beltre was originally asking for five years and the neighborhood of $65 million, so if we are to believe there were other teams interested at the same ‘annual value,’ Beltre would have been looking at four years, $28 million, which is a far cry from his initial sticker price. As of last week when they tried (and failed) to trade Lowell, the Red Sox were happy with the tandem of Kevin Youkilis and Casey Kotchman at the corner infield positions. Adding a player of Beltre’s caliber, even for just one year, makes them significantly better in the infield.↵↵Adding all that (and it’s a lot) together with the fact that the Sox signed shortstop Marco Scutaro in early December to a reported two-year, $12.5 million deal that seemed to be below market value for him and, yes, the Red Sox did pretty well this Hot Stove season. The fact that Scutaro also reportedly turned down a more lucrative deal – his offer came from Oakland – shows that, all of the sudden, Boston is the place everyone wants to play ... even if it means taking a pay cut. Well, unless you’re Jason Bay. ↵
↵↵Manager Terry Francona appeared on WEEI’s Dale & Holey Show in December and had this to say about their free-agent philosophy in 2010:↵
↵↵⇥We’ve talked a lot this winter about wanting to improve our defense. We’re trying to get better. Rather than go out and chase every bat that’s available and playing softball, I think we sat down a lot and talked about pitching and defense and trying to be better than the other team. And I think we all feel pretty good about that right now.↵↵↵When Francona said ‘the other team,’ did he mean the team the Red Sox are playing on any given night or the only other team they are concerned with in the standings: the Yankees? Either way, it’s important to remember that those comments were referencing the signing of Cameron instead of breaking the bank for Bay. Now they’ve added another Gold Glover to the mix with Beltre. And yes, this is worth repeating: players are now offering discounts to the Red Sox in order to win a championship and beat the current-World Champion New York Yankees in the process. What a terrible day to be an Orioles fan. ↵
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This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.
