According to the Major League Baseball Players Association, eight Red Sox were among 148 players to file for free agency Sunday. The list includes Erik Bedard, J.D. Drew, Conor Jackson, Trever Miller, David Ortiz, Jonathan Papelbon, Jason Varitek and Tim Wakefield.
Of the group, Ortiz and Papelbon figure to be Type A free agents -- resulting in the Red Sox receiving two draft picks if the player is offered arbitration, declines it and then signs with another team. Varitek is scheduled to be classified as a Type B free agent, potentially sending one draft pick to the Sox. It was reported Saturday night by WEEI.com that the Red Sox have yet to make a formal contract offer to Papelbon.
Marco Scutaro and Dan Wheeler each have team options the Red Sox have until 11:59 p.m. Monday to decide whether or not to pick up. Scutaro's team option is for $6 million, while Wheeler's option is for $3 million. If the options aren't executed, both would be eligible to file for free agency, although Scutaro also has a $3 million player option he can activate for 2012.
The Red Sox have until until Thursday at 12:01 a.m. to exclusively negotiate with their own free agents.
For more Red Sox news, go to the team page at weei.com/redsox [1].
Links:
[1] http://weei.com/redsox
[2] http://www.weei.com/category/boston/red-sox