YankeesRedSox.com

Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe, as well as other sources, is reporting that the Red Sox and Jon Lester have agreed to a $30mm, 5-year deal.  The deal includes a team option for a 6th year at $13mm.

Nice pick-up.  It buys out 2 years of free agency if they pick up the option.  Lester is far from a sure thing as he has had his health issues and really has only put together one good season, but lefties who can throw hard don't grow on trees...except on the rare south paux pine, only found in the forrests of the Ozarks.

If you are ok with me spending the Red Sox money for a minute, then I'd also try to lock up Jason Bay.  He isn't home-grown, but he is a more than solid player and the economy has weakened enough of late that it seems long-term deals are being signed for far less than they were just months ago.

We are at that point in spring training where it is starting to become a grind.  What with loads of games, the distraction/worry of the WBC and the realization that we are still about a month away from an official game, this time of year can drag on.

Also, with NESN offering up intense coverage of the day to day spring training activities, I am realizing that life in Fort Myers for a Red Sox players isn't exactly tough.  There is very little intense working out.  80% of the time you spot a group of players all standing around together doing next to nothing.

Unlike NFL camps or NHL camps or even your kid's summer camp, where there is non-stop activity, spring training for baseball players (at least the Red Sox) is just bit more strenuous than watching an all-day movie.  Yikes.  I wonder what the impact on a team would be if they did more running or conditioning?  Maybe it's just me getting old and longing for the "old days."