A rumored trade between the Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers would represent one of the largest transfers of player salaries in the history of Major League Baseball.
The Josh Beckett era appears on the verge of an abrupt ending with news of a blockbuster trade between the Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles DodgersRemember that July 31 trade deadline?
The fun wasn't over then.
The real action appears to be taking place nearly a month later and should provide a seismic change in direction for the Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Boston Globe and numerous other sources are reporting the details of a trade that would represent one of the largest transfers of player salaries in the history of Major League Baseball. In the proposed deal the Dodgers would acquire Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford, Josh Beckett and Nick Punto from the Red Sox in exchange for a package of prospects, plus impending free agent first baseman James Loney.
The deal could transfer more than $270 million in salaries from the Red Sox to the Dodgers, which would give the Dodgers one of the highest payrolls in all of baseball--nearly as high as the New York Yankees.
The deal may also put the Dodgers in a prime position to win the World Series this year.
The Red Sox would be making the deal to rid themselves of a number of burdensome contracts. The trade would leave no doubt about who the team's upper management blames for the 2012 squad's problems. No, not Bobby Valentine.
Theo Epstein.
The Red Sox, in one fell swoop, will have negated three of the biggest contracts for Epstein-signed players.
In essence they'd be doing exactly what conventional sports wisdom says you can't do:
They'd be firing the team, going against the old adage that managers take the fall because you can't get rid of the players.
It looks like the Red Sox have no intention of firing Bobby Valentine, but they seem content to ship three major components to Los Angeles.
The deal is jaw-droppingly large. The Dodgers haven't just absorbed a ton of salary. They've absorbed a ton of long-range salary.
Gonzalez and Crawford are both signed to long-term contracts. Crawford's expires after the 2017 season while Gonzalez's doesn't conclude until after the 2018 season.
The package of prospects the Red Sox are rumored to receive in the deal is impressive.
Rubby De La Rosa, Jerry Sands, Ivan De Jesus and Allen Webster are the four prospects and all are legitimate potential big-leaguers.
None more so than De La Rosa, a 23-year-old Dominican right hander one year removed from Tommy John surgery who is already throwing in the high 90's. He has the potential to be a top-of-the-rotation starter. Webster is also an intriguing prospect.
There is ample evidence that this deal is all but completed, but waiting for the approval of Beckett and Crawford, who both have veto power on any deal. As both teams perform their due diligence on the players' medical reports, finalization of the deal could be delayed until later in the weekend.