Bosten Red:The Red Sox concluded the 2010 MLB Winter Meetings in the same fashion in which they started them, with an emphatic move.

On Monday the Red Sox officially introduced Adrian Gonzalez as a member of the Boston Red Sox and just before midnight last night it was reported they added the top free agent hitter on the market, Carl Crawford, to a seven year $142 million contract.

Wow, just wow. Where to begin.

First and foremost let’s give credit where credit is due. Not in my wildest dreams did I anticipate the Red Sox shelling out another seven year deal at $20 million plus annually. I was proven wrong. Kudos to GM Theo Epstien, as well as John Henry, Tom Werner, and Larry Lucchino for forking up the dough to get this team back into the spot light in Boston where they should be.

Now who are the Sox getting in Carl Crawford?

Carl Crawford, 29 years old, is a stud athlete. Before being drafted 52nd overall by the Rays in 1999, he had signed a letter of intent to play QB at the University of Nebraska and was even offered a scholarship to play basketball at UCLA.

Crawford chose baseball though and made it to the Majors in 2002 at the age of 20. He never looked back.....Read More

Carl: The Boston Red Sox struck again at the winter meetings, reaching agreement with star outfielder Carl Crawford on a $142 million, seven-year contract Wednesday night.

A person familiar with the talks told The Associated Press the agreement was subject to Crawford passing a physical. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal was not yet finalized.

Crawford's free-agent deal was first reported by The Boston Globe on its website.

The Red Sox got Crawford two days after announcing they had acquired slugging first baseman Adrian Gonzalez in a trade with San Diego.

Boston's big deals follow a season in which it failed to make the playoffs. The Red Sox moves will certainly increase pressure on their perennial rivals, the Yankees, to make a splash – that could mean Cliff Lee.

"It's not going to change the way we allocate our money," Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said, shortly after midnight.

Yet Crawford's deal had to sting him. On Tuesday night, Cashman had dinner with the longtime Tampa Bay star. The Los Angeles Angels also pursued Crawford.

Earlier Wednesday, New York made its first offer to Lee, a six-year proposal worth nearly $140 million. It was easy to tell how eager the Yankees are to sign the prize pitcher.

"Hannibal Lecter in a straitjacket right now, waiting on this Cliff Lee thing," Cashman said. and this news from huffingtonpost.com