Mookie Betts and the Boston Red Sox have avoided an arbitration hearing.
The All-Star outfielder agreed to a one-year, $27 million contract with the Red Sox on Friday prior to MLB's arbitration deadline, ESPN's Jeff Passan reported Friday.
Betts' deal is a new record for an arbitration-eligible player, breaking Nolan Arenado's record $26 million contract with the Colorado Rockies.
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The contract still is slightly under projection, though; MLBTradeRumors.com predicted Betts would get $27.7 million on his new deal, while most estimates pegged him in the $27-$30 million range.
Betts' contract does include a nice extra perk, however, according to the New York Post's Joel Sherman.
Boston also agreed to a one-year, $11 million contract with outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. to avoid arbitration Friday, per Passan.
Boston Red Sox
To clarify, these deals don't preclude the Red Sox from trading either Betts or Bradley -- who both will become unrestricted free agents in 2021 -- between now and the July 31 MLB trade deadline.
In fact, finalizing both players' contracts could help Boston get the ball rolling on a potential trade now that their value is set.
Boston has a stated goal of getting under the luxury tax in 2020, and Betts would be the Red Sox' third-highest-paid player behind David Price ($32 million) and Chris Sale ($30 million).