Red Sox Sign Drew, Lugo

So I guess J.D. Drew’s decision to opt out of his contract with the Dodgers was a smart one. Drew has signed a 5-year, $70 million deal with the Boston Red Sox, who seem anxious to get rid of their money this winter.

Drew is a terrific player when healthy, which isn’t very often. He’s played more than 140 games in a season just twice over a career that spans 8+ years. Drew’s main strengths are strong on-base skills, solid defense in right field, and decent power. He’ll be 35 years old at the end of this contract, by which time Boston will be wondering why in the Kirk Gibson they signed Drew to such a long deal. (Gibson is one of Drew’s most comparable players according to Baseball-Reference and another ex-Dodger with an injury history that kept him from aging well.)

Not content to part with a mere $70 million, the Red Sox also have inked infielder Julio Lugo to a 4-year, $36 million deal. Lugo is a 31-year-old whose primary position is shortstop and who is a slightly below-average hitter. Good to see that Boston learned something from the Edgar Renteria signing from a couple years ago. Lugo last played for the Dodgers, who gave away mega-prospect Joel Guzman for 146 at-bats of .219/.278/.267 “production” from him.

I don’t know what it is about Lugo that causes big-league executives to do stupid things. Maybe he has Jedi powers or something.