BOSTON — The retooling Red Sox made two key moves in one day, reaching tentative agreements with pitcher John Lackey and outfielder Mike Cameron.
Lackey and Boston agreed on a five-year contract, according to a baseball official with knowledge of the negotiations. The deal is worth $16 million to $17.5 million a season, the official said Monday on condition of anonymity because the agreement was not yet final.
The Red Sox also reached a tentative agreement on a two-year contract with Cameron for $7 million to $8 million annually, according to a person familiar with those negotiations. That deal is subject to a physical, the person said on condition of anonymity because the agreement was not yet final.
The moves seem to indicate Boston has abandoned an attempt to re-sign slugging outfielder Jason Bay.
Lackey, the top pitcher on the free-agent market after spending eight seasons with the Angels, was in Boston for a physical Monday needed to complete the deal, the baseball official said.
Red Sox president Larry Lucchino and co-owner Tom Werner declined comment in e-mails to The Associated Press. Team owner John Henry and general manager Theo Epstein did not respond to e-mails.
The 31-year-old Lackey would give the Red Sox one of the best rotations in baseball, rivaling that of the New York Yankees, who added CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett before last season and then won the World Series. Sabathia signed for $161 million over seven years, while Burnett got an $82.5 million, five-year deal.
Lackey would join a rotation headlined by Josh Beckett and Jon Lester. Boston also has starters Daisuke Matsuzaka, Clay Buchholz and Tim Wakefield on the roster.
Lackey has a 102-71 regular-season record with a 3.81 ERA in eight seasons, all with the Angels. At Fenway Park, he is 2-5 with a 5.75 ERA in nine starts.
The right-hander is coming off a strong postseason in which he struck out 14 batters in 19 2-3 innings for Los Angeles while allowing five earned runs and 19 hits.
In the opener of the AL division series against Boston in Anaheim, Calif., Lackey allowed four hits with four strikeouts and a walk in 7 1-3 innings of a 5-0 win. Lester gave up three runs and four hits in six innings in that game. The Angels swept the series 3-0.
Cameron, who turns 37 next month, batted .250 with 24 homers and 70 RBIs last season for Milwaukee. A three-time Gold Glove winner in center field, he could switch to left with Boston as a replacement for Bay. The Red Sox have speedy Jacoby Ellsbury in center.
The addition of Lackey might make the 25-year-old Buchholz more expendable in a deal for offense. The Red Sox reportedly have shown interest in first basemen Adrian Gonzalez of San Diego and Miguel Cabrera of Detroit, and could switch Kevin Youkilis to third base. Boston also could pursue free-agent third baseman Adrian Beltre, who spent the past five seasons with Seattle.
Matsui, Angels reach deal
ANAHEIM, Calif. — World Series MVP Hideki Matsui and the Los Angeles Angels have reached a preliminary agreement on a one-year contract worth about $6.5 million.
“I can confirm that we are in serious discussions with the Angels,” Matsui’s agent, Arn Tellem, wrote in an e-mail.
Matsui surpassed 100 RBI four times in seven seasons with the Yankees after coming over from Japan, where he was an enormous star. He just completed a $52 million, four-year contract with New York.
Wolf signs with Brewers
MILWAUKEE — Randy Wolf, a 33-year-old left-hander, finalized a $29.75 million, three-year contract with Milwaukee, which also re-signed Craig Counsell to a $2.1 million deal. The Brewers also have a preliminary one-year agreement with reliever Claudio Vargas, a deal pending a physical. Wolf went 11-7 with a 3.23 ERA in 34 starts for the Los Angeles Dodgers last season after agreeing to a $5 million, one-year contract. Wolf went on to make an extra $3 million in performance bonuses with L.A.
Cardinals’ Freese faces DWI charge
ST. LOUIS — St. Louis Cardinals third baseman David Freese was arrested over the weekend on suspicion of driving while intoxicated, the fourth time in less than three years that a member of the team has faced drunken-driving allegations. Police in Maryland Heights, Mo., said Monday that Freese was stopped at 2:40 a.m. Saturday in suburban St. Louis for a traffic offense, then given a sobriety test.
The arrest of Freese was the fourth alcohol-related incident involving a member of the Cardinals since early 2007, when manager Tony La Russa was arrested at an intersection in Jupiter, Fla., for driving under the influence. Two months later, relief pitcher Josh Hancock died when the sport utility vehicle he was driving struck a tow truck that was parked on Interstate 64 in St. Louis.
Nationals and Olsen agree to deal
WASHINGTON — The Washington Nationals and left-hander Scott Olsen have agreed to a $1 million, one-year contract. Monday’s deal includes performance bonuses that allow Olsen to earn a total of $3,825,000 if he makes 33 starts next year. Olsen made just 11 starts for Washington in 2009, going 2-4 with a 6.03 ERA before surgery on his left shoulder in July. General manager Mike Rizzo said last week that Olsen is done rehabbing from the surgery and is getting ready for spring training.
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