Rick Porcello was well-aware of his surroundings before signing a contract extension with the Boston Red Sox. He was unfazed by the possibilities.
Porcello, who inked a four-year, $82.5 million extension last week, might have landed an even more lucrative contract if he waited and hit the open market next offseason. Waiting would have been a gamble, however, as the 2015-16 free-agent class figures to be loaded with proven starting pitchers.
“I didn’t look at the class and say, ‘Oh my God, there’s a ton of guys out there. I don’t want to compete with that many guys.’ That wasn’t the case,” Porcello recently told WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford. “It really just came down to wanting to be here with a team I know wants to win.
“Going through the whole spring, seeing it first-hand, knowing what I have here and not knowing what else is out there, that was important to me. I don’t want to play on a team that doesn’t have a chance to win. You see a lot of guys who go to the highest bidder and the next thing you know a year or two down the road they want out. I don’t want to end up in that situation. To me, having a chance to win is the most important thing.”
Porcello signed his extension before throwing a single pitch for the Red Sox. He fell in love with the organization while preparing for the season down in Fort Myers, Fla., and the Red Sox fell in love with Porcello because of his talent, his youth and, above all, his work ethic.
The 2015-16 free-agent class of starters could include Johnny Cueto, David Price, Jordan Zimmermann, Doug Fister and maybe even Zack Greinke, but Porcello would have been a unique target regardless. As such, Porcello sounds like he would have been comfortable entering the crowded waters. It’s just wasn’t of interest to him.
“I don’t think it factors in that much in regards to my situation because I’m a lot younger than those guys,” Porcello told Bradford. “I felt like whatever career numbers they have, I feel confident that I’m going to have a good year this year and if I did that I would have no problem putting myself up against those guys”
The Red Sox’s rotation comes with questions, mainly because it lacks an “ace” to begin the season. Perhaps Porcello will evolve into that pitcher with his new contract in tow.
Thumbnail photo via David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports Images
