Ridiculous. He shouldn’t have gotten any raise at all. What a farce. 

TRADE HIM!!

he’s not that good. he’s been hurt more then played…

Well let’s all enjoy his last year here folks, because that’s exactly what this is.If he can avoid breaking a leg, or knee or whatever it might be in his bad luck career. The reality is the sun is setting on his time in Boston. Scott Boras has a binder full of stats and is preparing to load up a wheelbarrow full of cash and Mr. Ellsbury will be no more. Let’s hope he gives us a nice finale.

Step # 1 before trading him

he’s now playing for his next contract. this year will be a good one for ellsbury.

 Wow, what a country playing a game where you have a terrible injury plagued season and still get a million dollar raise.

BTW to all those “trade him now” folks, who’s going to take an injury plagued player on his last year of a deal paying him 9 million?!?

THE METS lmao!

271 AVG 4 HOME RUNS AND 26 RBIs gets him 9 Million!! I really hate this team, Oh, maybe he is one of the sexy one’s the sox want… what a joke!!

Good investment for the Sox.  1 million more to Ellsbury gets them 5 milllion more in pink hats!!

Hey, it’s not my money. He’s a great player when he’s right. Still, we need depth in center. Reguardless, of what everyone thinks he’s the best outfielder on the team.

I heard he’s already on the DL

 You mean with Arod?

If you hate the team so much, go root for the Yankees

Geez you all are terrible fans. When the guy is healthy, he is MVP caliber player. He has had some freak injuries, so what it happens. Especially to aggressive base running/fielding players. He deserves what he got paid, and its still not too high for other teams to take on in a trade. Yes we have other needs now, and trading him would help this team. Just be honest and respect the guy, if not….no wonder he never feels comfortable here. 

Hoping Ells has a great year and decides to stay in Boston.

Overpaid? Really now, name another player that had a .300 30+HR season just over a year ago who can play Gold Glove defense and steal 50+ bases, that you can get for $9M/yr. Go ahead, I dare you. 

After last year, doesn’t look like his other options would pay off as well.

A million dollar raise for doing nothing.Oh the Red Sox are really tough on their players.Amazing to say the least.

He had better do well,Boras can’t work miracle’s.Jacoby is a pretty good lead off man at the most.There were times in 2012 when he played that he looked clueless at the plate.He will never come even close to 2011.

Wait, Johnny… Is that the sound of your testes finally descending?

He’s not nearly the 2011 guy,he’s not able to turn it on,he’s far from a superstar.He may turn out to be good and i hope he doe’s.Boras always lets his clients go to free agency,but he would like a contract before the season gets underway.Even he is not confident about a huge contract on the open market.If you read all the reports he would like an extention before the season starts.But i’m sure the Sox won’t fall for it.They want the rookie for 2014 along with a pick.

He got the big raise because of 2011,what makes me laugh is the million dollar raise for doing nothing.

Actually the rookie center fielder who will be there in 2014 is the better fielder.If you can field in the minors you can field in the mayjors.The Sox are not sweating center field as Victorino has won three gold gloves in that position.

He received a million dollar raise for doing nothing.He had a great 2011 and he will never repeat those numbers.Of course i would like him to repeat it would be great for the club and the fans,He’s more of a Crawford when he played for Tampa.The difference is he can play in Boston with the pressure.He’ll never put up Hamilton numbers again.

I think your probably right on target..he may not even be here all year.  The other issue is that B C has demonstrated no ability at all to sign an elite free agent.  Ells is a bit of a mixed bag though..he’s injured a lot and he’s not a quick healer by any means.

Very nice of the Red Sox to come in at such a high number for a guy who came off a horrific year number wise…That being said,he should earn his paycheck this year…

Thank you,Jack!

If a healthy ellsbury this year plays in over 150 games,hits 20 home runs ,85 rbi’s,hits .290,and steals 40 bases,then what kind of contract will he get,or what contract should he get?? Understand that in 2012,Matt kemp,who is light years ahead of ellsbury,,signed a long term deal at 20 mil per year…I truly believe that after the entire league saw what happened when you give a guy 20 mil per year long term that doesn’t have annual big time power(Carl Crawford),the deal will come back to haunt you….Nowhere in this league,are you seeing players who don’t have real power get paid 20 mil per year…Better yet,not only will guys that aren’t consitent deep threats not get 20 mil plus per year,,they shouldn’t get 20 mil plus per year..Don’t be surprised ,that if Jacoby only hits for the numbers that I projected,that he will only get 17 mil per year or so….Think about it…name me another hitters contract that pays out big for a guy who doesnt hit the long ball regularly.

Saying this,I wouldn’t mind resigning him at 6 years 96 million,and of course,extend Pedroia’s contract for the same,as was being reported….

Anyone on here know how arbitration works? Think maybe he could have been awarded more? 

 This years free agent class was rather meager so you should not cast blame on B C for not attempting to sign anyone of them (you can look it up). This years free agent class was full of spare parts who wanted max dollars and or contracts and Ben was prudent in not willing to overpay. FYI, look up to see who is available next year!

 It does not matter what time dinner is when your the steak to paraphrase Boras. Ellsbury will get paid if he remains healthy and productive this year.

Best handle on WEEI

That will never happen again

I hear what your trying to say…but BC has been on the job for 2 years now…what was the excuse last year..these guys like BC get paid to look out for more than one year..so far over two years I see one bad deal after another…nothing but bumbling..I hope all wrong on this..but I see another last place finish this coming season..and likely another one in 2014…I see no light at the end to the BRIDGE YEARS…do you?

I have a right as a sox fan for my disappointment in this organization and what they are doing as far as building a contender, I have been a fan for over 40 years and always supported this team regardless where they finished at the end of the year.

I just dislike the owners and the path they are going with this team, that’s what I meant Mr Grew up on Cape Ann, graduated from GHS in 1965 and Holy Cross in 69.. Not IMPRESSED with you or your opinion or credentials

So, we agree, we do not like the ownership of the Red Sox.  I really don’t care if you are not impressed by my “credentials” as you put it.   I stand by what I said, if you “hate” the team, go root somewhere else.  

I think he was on ‘roids during his MVP caliber year.  I know he had a short year last year, but he did have enough at bats to compensate for the lack of spring training in the end.  Fact is that he never got going, several month into returning.   Whenever someone has that dramatic a fall-off, there is usually one answer

The salary cap scenario is playing an important part in the near future for the Sox and other teams (to include the Yankees). Getting under it resets the penalty for going over it. Its quite possible that as fans we will be looking at several years of lousy baseball but we must be patient. Over the years we have been accustomed to the Sox overpaying for talent and demanding that they do it. We fans have become spoiled over the years by our teams success and we are now going to have to accept a dose of humility!

Similar to the NFL where teams employ salary cap experts, one could expect future employment for those adept in such matters to be hired by MLB teams.Long gone are the days when the Sox and Yankees could spend money with impunity. The penalty for being over the cap is too punitive and will make the Sox seek to develop talent while holding on to the draft picks. It behooves the Sox to hire the best talent evaluators around and begin the process of building for the future.

These one year deals which over pay journeymen players will ultimately come to an end and only “Premium” talent will be paid.

Saaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaweeeeet caroline whoa whoa whoa good times never felt sooo gooooood.