Sox pick up Sale’s option
Lefty ace will make $15M next season
In a move that comes as no surprise but will likely quell speculation that Chris Sale’s shoulder will require a major procedure, the Red Sox picked up the left-hander’s 2019 option.
The Red Sox inherited the club option when they acquired Sale from the White Sox before the 2017 season. The base salary is $13.5 million but Sale triggered a bonus clause worth $1.5 million at the end of last season when he finished second in Cy Young voting. His 2019 salary will be $15 million, still a bargain — David Price will make $31 million — as long as he is healthy and can pitch to his potential.
Bouts of “mild” left shoulder irritation hampered Sale’s second half. He finished 12-4 with a 2.11 ERA over 27 starts and 158 innings. He led the majors in strikeouts per nine innings (13.5) and WHIP (0.86), and had the longest scoreless streak (35 innings) and homerless streak (74 innings).
Sale pitched twice in relief and made three starts in the postseason. He earned the win in Game 1 of the Division Series against the Yankees and struck out the side in Game 5 against the Dodgers for the final outs of the World Series on Sunday night.
Sale was scheduled to start Game 5 but was pushed back because the Sox felt he would pitch better on more rest. The decision was made suddenly, the night before the game, sparking speculation that Sale is more seriously hurt than has been let on. Manager Alex Cora said Sale did not suffer a setback.
Right now, the Red Sox are in an exclusive five-day negotiating window with their own free agents: closer Craig Kimbrel, reliever Joe Kelly, starter/reliever Nathan Eovaldi, first baseman Steve Pearce, second basemen Ian Kinsler and Brandon Phillips and third baseman Eduardo Nunez. Nunez holds a $5 million option for next season.
The deadline to extend a qualifying offer — this year it’s worth $17.9 million — to their free agents is Friday at 5 p.m. The Sox are likely to extend one to Kimbrel, whom most expect will turn it down in order to sign a long-term deal elsewhere. If he does sign with another team after turning down the offer, the Sox would receive draft pick compensation.
A free agent who receives a qualifying offer has 10 days, until Nov. 12, to accept or reject the offer.
David Price has until today, parade day, to decide on the opt-out clause in his contract, which has four years remaining. Price indicated earlier in the season that he intended to stay, but all bets are off until he makes it official.
Red Sox notes
The Gold Glove award winners will be announced on Sunday night. The Red Sox can win up to five awards. All three outfielders are finalists. Mookie Betts competes with Kole Calhoun of the Angels and Aaron Judge of the Yankees in right field; in center, it’s Jackie Bradley Jr. up against Mike Trout of the Angels and Adam Engel of the White Sox; in left field, Andrew Benintendi vs. Kansas City’s Alex Gordon and Brett Gardner of the Yankees. At second base, Ian Kinsler competes against Jed Lowrie of the A’s and Rougned Odor of the Rangers; and at first base, it’s Mitch Moreland vs. Matt Olson of the A’s and
Justin Smoak of Toronto. Betts was the sole Red Sox winner of a Fielding Bible award as the best right fielder in the game this season. Betts won the award for the third consecutive year and was the unanimous vote-getter for the second season in a row . . . .
The Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., opened an exhibit yesterday featuring assorted artifacts from the Red Sox’ 2018 championship postseason. Among the donated items were a bat used by World Series MVP Steve Pearce in Game 4; a jersey worn by Price in Game 5 of the World Series; game-worn glasses used by reliever Joe Kelly; cap and spikes worn by Eovaldi throughout the World Series; the ball/strike indicator used by home plate umpire Barrett Ted
during Game 3, the longest game in World Series history; a hoodie worn by Cora; a bat used by Eduardo
Núñez in Game 1 of the World Series and a helmet worn by
Brock Holt throughout the postseason, including when he hit for the cycle against the Yankees in the Division Series . . . . Two Red Sox who did not pitch in the postseason, Brian Johnson and Hector Velazquez, will be on the MLB roster for the Japan All-Star Series with Nippon Professional Baseball Nov. 8-15.