Mike Napoli is not leaving the Boston Red Sox as a free agent.
The 32-year-old first baseman has reportedly agreed to a two-year contract with the defending World Series champions, according to Rob Bradford of WEEI.com and CSNNE.com’s Sean McAdam.
[tweet https://twitter.com/Sean_McAdam/status/409143065908355072 align=”center”]
Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports provided further information on the signing.
[tweet https://twitter.com/Ken_Rosenthal/status/409144082129489920 align=”center”]
Napoli, who still has his amazing beard, alerted Red Sox fans that he would be staying in Boston by sending out the following tweet:
[tweet https://twitter.com/MikeNapoli25/status/409142537455431680 align=”center”]
The 32-year-old first baseman joined the Red Sox prior to the 2013 season and batted .259 with 23 home runs and 92 RBIs in 139 regular-season games.
His ability to hit for power and protect David Ortiz in the lineup played a significant role in the Red Sox finishing first in the majors in runs scored, on-base percentage and slugging percentage. Napoli also provided several clutch hits in the team’s journey to a World Series title, including a few important home runs in the ALCS against the Detroit Tigers.