Earlier on Thursday, Boston Red Sox outfielder Jason Bay filed for free agency. Later in the day, two of his teammates joined him.
Reliever Billy Wagner and reserve outfielder Rocco Baldelli both filed for free agency on Thursday afternoon.
It was expected that Wagner would file for free agency and we know the Red Sox will offer him arbitration as he is a Type A free agent. Unless the Red Sox trade Papelbon, which is not going to happen, Wagner will be looking for a closer’s job somewhere. He had said he was going to retire but his agent said that was said in the heat of the moment after the Red Sox were eliminated by the Angels.
Wagner appeared in 15 games for the Red Sox and was 0-2 with a 1.98 ERA. He had 22 strikeouts in 13 2/3 innings.
Baldelli, a Rhode Island native spent a good portion of the season on the disabled list with various ailments. In 62 games played, he hit .253 with seven home runs, 23 RBIs and a stolen base.
With the acquisition of Jeremy Hermida earlier on Thursday, it’s highly unlikely that Baldelli will be back with the Red Sox next season.
