The Boston Red Sox became the first team to make an impact in this month’s winter meetings. The mega event which brought together general managers and free agents in Major League Baseball was held in Disney’s Swan and Dolphin Resort on 6 December. The American
League East team, Red Sox, shocked the press with Gonzalez’s signing. The deal saw the veteran ball-smasher climb the ladder in his illustrious career as he issued a challenge to the New York Yankees in a bid to mark his signing.
Now with Christmas around the corner, reports are coming out on a new development in the Red Sox camp. Apparently, management in Boston is concerned over a possibility that Gonzalez may raise his salary demand after 2011 campaign. The player had one year
left on his contract with the San Diego Padres but due to the trade, Boston holds that document now.
His agreement is set to expire in 2011 and the Red Sox are hoping that a mega bid offer for St. Louis Cardinal’s player, Albert Pujols will not affect Adrian’s demands in the future. The Pujols offer is estimated by some speculators to be worth $30 million
per year. Gonzalez explained the situation to ESPNBoston.com. He expects to continue with the club and hopes General Manager of the Red Sox, Theo Epstein, will see to it that a mutual agreement is reached during the coming year.
"I made a comment to (Red Sox general manager) Theo (Epstein), 'Make the trade happen by itself, and I promise you during the season I'll negotiate," Gonzalez told ESPN. "I'm not going to come here and be like, 'OK, we'll see you at free agency and see if
you outbid the other teams.' We'll negotiate during the season. We're going to be fair. We won't be looking for record-breaking deals. We just want market value."
When Adrian Gonzalez was showcased in front of the press by the Red Sox during the winter meetings, Theo Epstein mentioned the progress on the deal. He highlighted some key points and talked of the situation in brief.
"We learned a lot about each other's positions, there was a lot of good faith that developed over the course of the negotiations," Theo Epstein said. "We got close to a deal, but in the end, the window lapsed and we didn't have a deal... There wasn't a single
person who felt like, at the end of the day, we won't get a deal done when the time is right."
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