July 31, 2007
Gagne to the Red Sox?
Baseball Tonight is talking about Eric Gagne going to the Red Sox for CF Murphy and Kason Gabbard. Gagne has to approve the trade, but will he if the Sox are going to continue to use Papelbon as the closer?
Update: Here's a story from Ken Rosenthal at Fox. (Thanks to David Sussman for the link.)
Update: Amy Nelson from ESPN.com reported on BBTN that an incentive change is trying to be written into Gagne's contract, changing a games pitched incentive to a games finished incentive. This indicates to me that Gagne would be closing in Boston.
Update: Someone in the comments pointed out that I had the contract switch backwards. That makes much more sense.
Update: Buster Olney just reported this deal is done. The Red Sox are going to pay Gagne's games finished incentive. At this point, Red Sox starters just need to go six, or Boston can rotate Papelbon, Gagne and Okajima in and out of setup and closer rolls.
The Red Sox do give up three players, but I'm not overly impressed with Gabbard and Murphy. Engel Beltre is sixteen years old, however, and playing decently in rookie league ball. His is the name to watch in the future.
Posted by David Pinto at
02:32 PM
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It's the other way around. Gagne currently has a huge games finished incentive. BOS wants to switch to games pitched and have him set-up or split closing duties with Paps.
I liked Gabbard a lot. My imagination projected him as a Glavine, Kenny Rogers, Moyer-type. That's a high ceiling to be sure, but good-looking lefties are a rare commodity.
IF this is the only deal they make (ie: no Dye trade) and Gabbard is the only young arm they give up, It's a pretty good deadline for the BoSox.
Sox just announced Brendan Donnelly to have Tommy John surgery.