David Ortiz wants Red Sox to target top free-agent pitcher Justin Verlander

David Ortiz has spent months campaigning for the Boston Red Sox to lock in Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers long-term.

Now, Big Papi has another request to add to the list. A big one.

Over the weekend, Ortiz sat down for a virtual chat with MassLive’s Chris Cotillo and announced that the Sox should bring Justin Verlander to Boston:

"“To have a guy like Verlander out there… you can add him to your resumé, it’ll be great, but you know you gotta pay.”"

David Ortiz wants Red Sox to pursue Justin Verlander in free agency

ESPN predicts that Verlander will command a two or three-year deal between $80-130M, which is quite a wide range. MLB Trade Rumors gives him three years, $120M after his ‘renaissance’ season following Tommy John surgery. The Athletic projected three years, $135M.

And which team will be paying him this gargantuan sum? The Mets, Astros, and Dodgers are among the teams likely to cough it up. Last month, MLB.com listed him as likely to return to Houston, where he’s been since the 2017 trade deadline. But with Jacob deGrom signing a stunning mega-deal with the Texas Rangers on Friday, Verlander is now ‘front and center‘ for the Mets, and they’re almost certainly prepared to make a bigger offer than the Sox.

Ortiz isn’t the only one hoping for Verlander to head east. Catherine Varitek, wife of the legendary Sox captain-turned-coach, would like to see Verlander in Boston for another reason:

Verlander is coming off his third Cy Young season (including two in the last four years), in which he led MLB with a 1.75 ERA, 220 ERA+, and 0.829 WHIP. He led the American League with 18 wins and a 6.0 H/9. Over his 17-year career, he has a 3.24 ERA across 3,163 innings and he’s the active leader in strikeouts with 3,198.

Bogaerts and Devers must be the Sox’ top priority. But if they want to throw money at Verlander after locking them in, why not?

Update: Mets signing Justin Verlander

Sorry, Papi. The New York Mets are in agreement with Verlander on a two-year, $86.66M deal. The $43.33M average annual value is tied with his once-again teammate, Max Scherzer, for the highest AAV in MLB history. The formidable duo headlined the Detroit Tigers’ starting rotation from 2010-14.

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