Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com reports that free agent pitcher John Lackey took a physical with the Boston Red Sox today. This is a huge sign that Lackey is close to signing a deal with the team. Rosenthal believes the deal is close to the one A.J. Burnett signed with the New York Yankees last offseason for 5 years and $82.5 million. The 31-year-old Lackey is considered the No. 1 free agent starter on the market and has spent his entire 8-year career with the Los Angeles Angels.
The potential signing of Lackey would be a huge move for the Red Sox as he would bring another great arm to their rotation in their quest to dethrone the Yankees. The Red Sox rotation would consist of Josh Beckett (RHP), Lackey (RHP), Jon Lester (LHP), Daisuke Matsuzaka (RHP), and either veteran knuckleballer Tim Wakefield (RHP) or youngster Clay Buchholz (RHP). This move could also be a sign the Red Sox are using Clay Buchholz as a potential trade chip to acquire a big bat such as San Diego Padres’ Adrian Gonzalez (1B).
During his time with the Angels, Lackey was 102-71 with an ERA of 3.81 along with a postseason record of 3-4 with a 3.12 ERA. Last season, Lackey was 11-8 with a 3.83 ERA in 176.1 innings IP. He also had a WHIP of 1.27 along with a 139:47 K/BB ratio. Lackey has battled injuries over the past few seasons which has limited him to under 200 innings for only the 2nd time in his career besides his rookie season where he wasn’t with the team for a full season.
Previously on Amateurgm.com, Andrew Swanson posted on the free agent starters that were considered a risk due to injury. Lackey is considered to be one of those pitchers and does come with some risk for the Red Sox. However, when healthy Lackey is a top of the rotation starter who will provide quality innings with solid strikeout numbers, low walk totals, and a good WHIP. I believe Lackey is worth the risk and is a perfect addition to the Red Sox rotation. The Red Sox would have a rotation that would be able to compete with any team in the AL next season including the Yankees. I expect the Red Sox to look to their offense next by adding Adrian Beltre as a replacement at third for Mike Lowell, especially with the recent news that Jason Bay is unlikely to re-sign with the team. Do you think this is a good signing for the Red Sox or are Lackey’s recent arm issues a sign for concern?
