After reportedly acquiring Adrian Gonzalez from San Diego on Saturday, the deadline came and went for the Sox and Gonzalez to sign a contract extension and for now, it seems the deal is dead.
Then, just hours later, it was announced that the Red Sox lost out on a potential bid for the services of Jayson Werth — a player the Sox sat down this week — when the free-agent outfielder signed an unreal seven-year, $126 million contract with the Nationals.
That last sentence means that in all likelihood the asking price and desired length of contracts for other free agents like, Carl Crawford, will be sky-high as well.
The Red Sox, according to reports, are still open to making the trade for Gonzalez, even without a contract extension in place. That, of course, is a bit of a risk considering that Gonzalez has one year left on his contract and is even riskier when you take into consideration the the Sox are giving up three highly touted prospects to get Gonzalez.
It's true that three prospects would be a lot to give up for just one guaranteed year of service. However, if the Red Sox do pull the trigger on the deal, they'll at least be able to negotiate — whether it be tomorrow or down the road — exclusively with Gonzalez until he gets to the market.
And while it's unfortunate to part with prospects like Casey Kelly, Anthony Rizzo and Reymond Fuentes, they remain "prospects" for a reason. It's hard to imagine their stock getting substantially higher than it is now and more importantly, they've yet to show their true value. Gonzalez is the proven commodity. With an obvious desire to strengthen the middle of the lineup, this may be Boston's best chance to do so, especially in the wake of the Werth signing.
Not only that, but the obvious fact remains that the Sox will have the services of Gonzalez for an entire season. That should benefit both sides and could further the case for Gonzalez being a long-term fixture on Yawkey Way.
For the Red Sox, they'll get an up-close-and-personal look at the type of impact Gonzalez will have on their team. They'll be able to see what he can do at Fenway Park (potentially with a shortened right-field porch, mind you), they'll be able to see what he can do in the Red Sox lineup and they'll be able to see how he'll enhance their "run prevention" with his sparkling defense at first base.
From Gonzalez' perspective, a season in Boston may help push him toward re-signing with the Sox as well. He'll likely see that he truly is the "ultimate Fenway Park player," and for the first time in his career really, he'll be playing on a team that has a realistic chance to win the World Series.
In some ways, and perhaps this is wishful thinking, yearning for the best-case scenario even, but maybe the Red Sox and Adrian Gonzalez need each other.
There's still a chance the Red Sox deal for the all-star slugger. There's still a chance that the Red Sox and Gonzalez work out an extension. But even if the latter of those scenarios don't work out, the Sox would stil be hard-pressed to pass up on at least a season of Gonzalez.
The Red Sox are undoubtedly looking at this from a long-term perspective. That obviously makes a ton of sense, but at the same time, the long term has to at some point become the short term. What better time than now with a talent like Gonzalez at your doorstep?
This deal has been in the making for too long. It'd be a shame for both sides for it not to get done.
Who knows? Maybe after a season together, both sides will realize how well they fit together and both will come down on their respective demands. It's what they should be doing right now, but you've got to think Red Sox fans would be willing to wait a year to see that happen.
Should the Red Sox make a trade for Adrian Gonzalez no matter what? Or is the asking price too high to part ways with when there is no contract guaranteed? Share your thoughts below.
