Royals Angels Baseball

Patrick Sandoval, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery, agreed to a two-year deal with the Red Sox on Friday. Ashley Landis/Associated Press

The Red Sox won’t lack in lefties next year.

They’ve spent December prioritizing southpaws, signing relievers Justin Wilson and Aroldis Chapman, making a bid to free-agent star Max Fried, then pivoting to a massive trade for White Sox breakout arm Garrett Crochet when Fried chose the Yankees.

On Friday, the Red Sox reached an agreement with longtime Angels lefty Patrick Sandoval on a two-year, $18.25 million deal, which buys out his final season of arbitration eligibility and first year of free agency. The Boston Herald confirmed that Sandoval, who turned 28 on Oct. 18, will earn $5.5 million in ’25 (a slight raise from his $5.025 million salary this year) and $12.75 million in ‘26.

Sandoval had Tommy John surgery in June and isn’t expected back on the mound until the second half of the upcoming season, which factored into the Angels’ decision to non-tender him this fall. He becomes the fifth pitcher in the last four offseasons to sign a multi-year deal with the Red Sox while recovering from UCL surgery: James Paxton, Liam Hendriks, and minor-league contracts for Wyatt Mills and Michael Fulmer.

Sandoval has spent his entire big-league career with the Angels, who acquired him from the Astros in exchange for catcher Martín Maldonado at the ’18 trade deadline. Over 107 games between his debut in August of 2019 and the Tommy John surgery that ended his ’24 campaign in late June, Sandoval owns a 4.01 ERA and 1.392 WHIP, with 529 strikeouts over 536 innings. He’s worked primarily as a starter (100 starts), but also made seven relief appearances early in his big-league career. His best season was 2022 when he posted a 2.91 ERA over 27 starts, with career-highs in strikeouts (151) and innings pitched (148 2/3).

Sandoval’s pitch mix is headlined by one of the best changeups in the majors. He also throws a slider, sinker, four-seam fastball, curveball, and sweeper, which he introduced in 2023. The four-seam was his most-used pitch early in his career, but it yielded negative run value in five of his six seasons. According to Baseball Savant’s MLB percentile rankings Sandoval’s whiff and chase rates have plummeted in recent seasons, and opposing batters’ on-base percentages have climbed, but he’s consistently pitched to above-average barrel rate, exit velocity, and curveball spin.

MICHAEL FULMER, the 2016 AL Rookie of the Year, will have a chance to make the Boston Red Sox as a spring training non-roster invitee.

The 31-year-old right-hander missed all of last season recovering from right elbow surgery. A 2017 All-Star, Fulmer was 3-5 with a 4.42 ERA for the Cubs in 2023.

Also invited to spring training are catcher Seby Zavala, infielder/outfielder Nate Eaton and righties Isaiah Campbell, Bryan Mata, and Wyatt Mills. Mata was Boston’s top pitching prospect before missing most of 2023 with an injury.

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