The Red Sox apparently are looking to keep Nathan Eovaldi in a Boston uniform.
Boston has extended a multi-year contract offer to Eovaldi, as first reported by Marino Pepén on Saturday and confirmed by WEEI’s Rob Bradford on Sunday morning. Neither Pepén nor Bradford shed light on the details of the reported offer, and the latter pointed out that the gesture doesn’t mean a pact between Eovaldi and the Red Sox is imminent.
Eovaldi arguably is the most valuable pitcher Boston watched enter Major League Baseball free agency Thursday. The Red Sox on that same day extended a qualifying offer to the veteran right-hander, but the reported multi-year offer suggests Eovaldi doesn’t plan on signing the one-year extension. There seemingly was a possibility Eovaldi could accept the qualifying offer after an injury-plagued 2022 season, unlike fellow free agent Xander Bogaerts.
Boston brought the 32-year-old on board roughly a week before the MLB trade deadline in 2018. Less than two months after helping the Red Sox win the World Series that season, Eovaldi signed a four-year, $68 million deal to stay in Boston. The 11-year big league veteran was viewed as a potential trade piece leading up to the trade deadline back in early August, but the Red Sox elected to hang onto the flamethrower.
Eovaldi has appeared in 96 games (461 2/3 innings) with Boston to date, totaling a 26-18 record with a 4.05 ERA and 468 strikeouts. He’ll turn 33 in February.
