FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) — Young right-hander Brayan Bello and the Boston Red Sox agreed Thursday to a $55 million, six-year contract.
Bello gets a $1 million signing bonus and salaries of $1 million this year, $2.5 million in 2025, $6 million in 2026, $8.5 million in 2027, $16 million in 2028 and $19 million in 2029. The deal includes a $21 million team option for 2030 with a $1 million buyout that if exercised would make the agreement worth $75 million over seven seasons.
Bello turns 25 in May and was signed by the Red Sox from the Dominican Republic in 2017 for $28,000.
He would have been eligible for arbitration after the 2025 season and for free agency following the 2028 season. He had a $729,500 salary last year and, absent the long-term deal, likely would have received about $750,000 this season.
Bello was 12-11 with a 4.24 ERA in 28 starts last year for the last-place Red Sox, averaging 95.5 mph with his four-seam fastball. His fastball velocity was 97.7 mph in 2022, when he went 2-8 with a 4.71 ERA in 11 starts and two relief appearances.
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He is part of a projected rotation that includes Nick Pivetta, Kutter Crawford, Tanner Houck and Garrett Whitlock.
Boston signed free agent Lucas Giolito to a $38.5 million, two-year contract, but the 29-year-old right-hander likely will need Tommy John surgery for the second time.
