Stephen Drew leaving the Sox
Photo courtesy of ESPN Boston |
Contributing Writer
A baseball source said that shortstop Stephen Drew will not return to the Red Sox next season, ESPN Boston is reporting. According to ESPN Boston, there are teams that are willing to offer Drew a multi-year deal beyond what the Red Sox will offer him. Scott Boras, who is Drew's agent, has been in touch with Ben Cherington, but contends that there is plenty of interest in both his Red Sox clients (the other being Jacoby Ellsbury), according ESPN Boston.
Here's what Boras had to say, per ESPN Boston:
"Obviously, if you want to win, and you want a middle-of-the-diamond player -- and a lot of really, really good teams need upgrades in the middle of the diamond -- he's got a very active, very large market."
Sounds like a classic agent move, claiming there is interest in his clientele to try to drive up the value. In the case of Ellsbury and Drew, he's probably right.
Drew rejected the $14.1 million, 1 year qualifying offer in favor of testing a weak shortstop market. Drew will probably get plenty of interest for his defense, which was on full, rangey, display in the postseason. You know what wasn't on display? His bat. And that could be a factor in the Red Sox not re-signing Drew.
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