Red Sox Rumors: Corey Kluber, BOS Agree to 1-Year, $10M Contract with Option for 2024
The Boston Red Sox and starting pitcher Corey Kluber have reportedly agreed on a one-year contract that also includes a team option for the 2024 season, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan.
Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported the contract is worth $10 million "plus incentives" and Alex Speier of the Boston Globe added further details:
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Per Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com, the Red Sox have "pursued Kluber for years and finally landed him."
Add the Kluber signing to what has been an interesting offseason for the Red Sox, to put it mildly.
The team has now signed Kluber, Japanese outfielder Masataka Yoshida, veteran closer Kenley Jansen and veteran third baseman Justin Turner but also saw star shortstop Xander Bogaerts sign with the San Diego Padres, starter Nathan Eovaldi sign with the Texas Rangers and longtime designated hitter J.D. Martinez join the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Kluber will join Chris Sale, Nick Pivetta and Garrett Whitlock atop Boston's rotation, though Sale's future in Boston is also uncertain:
The 36-year-old Kluber is a three-time All-Star and won the AL Cy Young Award in 2014 and 2017 with the Cleveland Guardians, though injuries limited him to just eight starts between the 2019-20 seasons with the Guardians and Rangers, respectively.
He made 16 starts for the New York Yankees in 2021, going 5-3 with a 3.83 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 82 strikeouts in 80 innings.
He then joined the Tampa Bay Rays for the 2022 campaign, finishing 10-10 in 31 starts with a 4.34 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 139 strikeouts in 164 innings.
Once one of baseball's preeminent aces, Kluber is now more of a back-of-the-rotation option. With Eovaldi in Texas, however, he's a solid replacement for a Red Sox team working through another period of turnover and looking to keep up in the loaded AL East.
