Red Sox Could Be Priced Out Of Reunion Talks With Playoff Hero After Recent Milestone

Is Boston willing to pay for this hurler a second time?

Sep 20, 2019; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; A detail view of Boston Red Sox hats and gloves at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-Imagn Images / Kim Klement-Imagn Images

Yet another Major League Baseball offseason is fast approaching, and the Boston Red Sox are once again in desperate need of starting pitching.

Following a second half in which their starters' ERA jumped from 3.58 (fourth in MLB) to 4.19 (16th), Boston needs to add at least one quality big-league starter, and more likely two. Current rotation member Nick Pivetta is a free agent, and it appears unlikely the Red Sox will bring him back.

One potential free agent is an intriguing candidate for a Red Sox return. But he accomplished a milestone on Tuesday that makes that potential reunion more complicated.

Nathan Eovaldi, who played in Boston from 2018 to 2022, is set to hit the market after a successful two-year tenure with the defending World Series champion Texas Rangers. Entering his age-35 season, Eovaldi will be looking to cash in big one more time while he still has his A-game.

On Tuesday night, Eovaldi pitched at home against the Toronto Blue Jays. He pitched poorly, allowing seven earned runs, capped off by a Davis Schneider grand slam. But he also crossed an important threshold that will make for easier negotiations come the offseason.

Because Eovaldi pitched five innings, he's now thrown more than 300 across the last two seasons. That triggers a vesting option in his contract, making him eligible to return to the Rangers on a $20 million salary in 2025 if he so chooses.

Eovaldi likely could cash in a bigger paycheck than that on the open market, especially when factoring in multiple years. But it's a nice cushion to fall back on. Maybe he doesn't think this season was his best showing and will want to take the risk of betting on himself one more time.

As a two-time World Series champion, one of which was a heroic performance for the 2018 Red Sox, Eovaldi's eventual contract is likely to end up bigger than a different pitcher with equivalent regular season stats. But he's also pitched to a 3.65 ERA the past two seasons (excluding Tuesday).

Some Red Sox fans might love a reunion. Some might be opposed to it. But given what we have seen the past two winters, will the price tag even be given consideration?

Of course, Eovaldi is just one option. But if the Red Sox don't add a starter of at least his caliber, it will be a mutinous winter for fans around New England.

More MLB: Red Sox Rookie Of The Year Candidate Earns Surprising Performance Grade