Psychhhhhh…Gonzalez to Boston is Officially Done

What a day for Red Sox nation. It began with sheer optimism about the acquisition of Adrian Gonzalez, but that excitement quickly disappeared when contract extension talks failed. Then, Jayson Werth signed a monster deal with the Washington Nationals, making it seem like the Sox were going to completely strikeout this off-season and come away with no power bats. Then, in an amazing twist of fate Sunday night, the Sox completed the trade for A-Gon and agreed on parameters for a contract extension they will sign after opening day 2011. Wow….catch your breath and relax because the left-handed slugger is officially a member of the Boston Red Sox. Press conference scheduled for tomorrow. Now, let’s see how it happened…

It seems as though that Theo Epstein deserves more credit than I gave him earlier this afternoon. The 2pm deadline for an extension today was not a hard deadline and Theo was able to work out the parameters of a deal with A-Gon by keeping him in Boston past his 4:30pm flight. In a brilliant money move, Theo and A-Gon will officially agree on the contract after opening day in order to save the Sox mega-money in luxury taxes. The move not only is amazing for the Sox now, but it also saves the team in the long run as well by announcing it in April. Theo has redeemed himself in a big way.

I could go on forever and repeat my feelings on every aspect of A-Gon again, but suffice it to say, the rocky road was worth it if the end result is the big slugger playing 1st base for the Boston Red Sox in 2011 and beyond. What a roller-coaster day, but with a big finish. Phew…