Red Sox And David Price Agree To Massive $217 Million Deal

After trading John Lester at the 2014 trade deadline, the Red Sox have sorely lacked a pitching ace. That looks to be a thing of the past, as the team has reportedly agreed to a seven-year, $217 million deal with free agent pitcher David Price.

While the Lester trade was facilitated by an organizational fear of paying aging pitchers large sums of money, new general manager Dave Dombrowski‘s agenda is different. After witnessing Price’s effectivity first hand in Detroit, the signing made sense.

The contract sets a record for the highest annual salary ever paid to a pitcher; the deal roughly breaks down to $1 million per start. Price can also opt out of the deal after three seasons with no deferred money.

Despite his infamous postseason struggles, Price is undoubtedly one of baseball’s top pitchers. After being shipped to Toronto at the trade deadline for example, Price went 9-1 with a 2.30 ERA in the remaining portion of the regular season.

Prior to the trade, Price had proven his prowess over and over. He was at his most dominant in Tampa Bay, where he went 82-47; he also won the Cy Young Award as a Ray in 2012. In Detroit, he went 13-8 in 32 starts.

Without a doubt, Dombrowski has already improved the Red Sox by addressing their two biggest weaknesses. Not only has he added an ace in Price, but he previously traded for closer Craig Kimbral in November.

 

Photo: David Price #14 of the Toronto Blue Jays pitches in the first inning against the Kansas City Royals in game six of the 2015 MLB American League Championship Series at Kauffman Stadium on October 23, 2015 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images)