Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
Last offseason, the biggest drama involving the Boston Red Sox was the signing of Mike Napoli. After Boston pretty quickly agreed to a three-year contract with the first baseman, they then discovered an issue with his hip while he was getting his routine physical. This caused the signing to drag and drag for weeks on end. Finally, they agreed to a one-year deal.
Napoli is now once again a free agent, and after the year that he had he will have his choice of suitors lining up. He had a solid year offensively and he showed that he is a much better first baseman than people previously thought. He has made it quite clear that he wants to stay in Boston. However, other teams have showed an interest in him. One of those teams is the Colorado Rockies.
Colorado is looking for a first baseman for the first time in years because their mainstay and arguably the face of the franchise, Todd Helton, retired at the end of the 2013 season. The Rockies are putting their feelers out for any free agent first baseman, and Napoli is at the top of their shopping list. Napoli could be a good fit because he has shown that he has enough power that he can hit a ball out of any park, including Coors Field. Remember that blast he hit during the ALCS against the Detroit Tigers? Many people who saw that home run said they had never seen a ball hit that far there.
The Rockies will give Boston a run for their money to acquire Napoli, but my guess is that he will somehow stay in Boston. Last year with that whole issue regarding his hip, he could have walked away at any time while the renegotiating of the contract was being hashed out, but he didn’t because he had faith in Boston. He showed he had no physical issues with the hip and both parties know each other better so I wouldn’t be surprised if this will be easier to deal with than last year.
Furthermore, Napoli wants to stay and has made that very clear. Now if he does stay, here is the other question: What about the beard?
Carter Roane is a Boston Red Sox writer for www.Rantsports.com. Follow him on Twitter@CarterGRoane, “Like”him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
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