With the physical exam dispensed with, the Red Sox will officially introduce outfielder Carl Crawford at a 10 a.m. news conference on Saturday. Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com has gotten the details on Crawford's contract:

Signing bonus: $6 million
2011: $14 million
2012: $19.5 million
2013: $20 million
2014: $20.25 million
2015: $20.5 million
2016: $20.75 million
2017: $21 million

So basically, if you find yourself out to dinner with Crawford in the next seven years and he doesn't reach for the check, he's just being a cheapskate.

-- David Andriesen

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No question which team improved itself most this week, not after word just broke that the Red Sox have won the bidding for the top position player on the free-agent market, outfielder Carl Crawford.

Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe broke the story on Twitter, saying the Red Sox have agreed to a seven-year, $142 million deal. Others have since confirmed the report. Earlier this week, Boston traded for first baseman Adrian Gonzalez. That lineup is looking pretty fearsome.

Crawford, 29, is coming off his best season, in which he batted .307/.356/.495 with 90 RBI and 19 homers for Tampa Bay. He led the American League with 13 tripes and stole 47 bases, and won his first Gold Glove. Crawford has proven to be consistent and durable, playing at least 150 games in six of his eight seasons as a starter.

The Red Sox now have the option of moving Jacoby Ellsbury back to center field. Having a player with Crawford's speed and range in left in Fenway, with such a small area to cover, seems like a waste, but you'd think they will want to protect their investment. Trading Ellsbury also could be a possibility, especially as lefty-heavy as Boston's lineup is now. This almost certainly means the Red Sox are out on Adrian Beltre, but that was probably already the case.

This isn't going to make Angels fans too happy, as they were considered the favorite for Crawford and he was thought to be their top target. It could up the ante for bidding on Cliff Lee and Beltre, the biggest names left on the market for teams looking to make an impact signing (Yankees, Angels, Rangers).

As mlbtraderumors.com notes, Crawford would become the first position player in history without a 20-homer season to sign a contract worth more than $100 million. On annual average value, this also will be the biggest contract ever for an outfielder.

UPDATE: A source tells the New York Daily News the Angels had offered Crawford seven years at $108 million. I'm not great at math, but that's at least eleventeen million less than $142 million.

-- David Andriesen

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Two sources close to the Angels expect Carl Crawford to eventually land with the L.A. ballclub, as ESPN L.A.'s Mark Saxon reveals.

This jives with earlier reports that the Angels felt they were very close on Crawford and would eventually land the left fielder's services.

Not that this is news -- Crawford has been linked to the Angels since before he was even born. Okay, maybe not before Crawford was born, but pretty close to it.

Simply put, Crawford makes too much sense for the Angels. The club has money to burn and a desire to make a splash after a disappointing season dropped them to an 80-82 record.

Plus, Crawford is the epitome of what an Angels ballplayer is all about: defense, speed, and a well-rounded offensive game. Crawford will be good for around 30 doubles, 10 triples and and 15 home runs with 50 stolen bases. That's a playmaker that would instantly represent Angels baseball.

One problem: the Crawford saga could drag out to the point the Angels could be forced to make a decision on Adrian Beltre. There is mutual interest on both sides, but it's unlikely that the club can afford both Crawford and Beltre and the third baseman's market is starting to crystallize. CBSSports.com's Scott Miller says it is possible Beltre signs before the Winter Meetings end.

-- Evan Brunell

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The Rangers met with Carl Crawford's agent, as Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reveals.

Crawford remains unlikely to sign until Lee does as the Yankees' pursuit of Lee will dictate their interest in Crawford. There have been reports that the Angels are very close with Crawford and may even be close to a deal.

-- Evan Brunell

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Angels general manager Tony Reagins was a late arrival Monday to the Winter Meetings, not getting in until the end of the opening day due to mechanical problems delaying his flight.

Of course the first wave of questions for him included his reaction to the seven-year, $126 million deal signed Sunday between Jayson Werth and the Nationals. It figures to seriously up the ante for a more highly regarded outfielder, Carl Crawford, whom the Angels are known to be targeting.

"I don't have a reaction," Reagins said, according to the Los Angeles Times. "We still have to conduct business with any free agent, but this is part of the process. ... We're still conducting business. What other clubs do doesn't affect how we operate."

That's pretty much what Reagins has to say -- he can't come out and go, "Oh crap, guess we have to pay Crawford a bunch more now!" -- but his view that the Werth deal doesn't affect the market isn't the view that counts. Crawford and his agent, Greg Genske, had to be doing cartwheels at news of Werth's contract.

But if market price for Crawford is now an eight-year deal at $150 million-plus (some have speculated as high as $180 million), how many options could there be for him? Who's in position to commit that kind of money? The Angels have deep pockets, but that could hamstring them in making other improvements. The Red Sox want a big bat, but might be hard-pressed to go that high, especially with a big extension for Adrian Gonzalez now on the horizon. That leaves us with ... you know who. Fact is, we might have reached a point where a player who demands $180 million has just one place to get it: The Bronx. 

UPDATE: Sounds like the Red Sox might already have bowed out on Crawford. Speaking with reporters this evening, GM Theo Epstein said his team's remaining priorities are "bullpen...bullpen....and maybe add a right-handed bat.'' Crawford is neither a right-handed bat nor a reliever.

-- David Andriesen

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Carl Crawford's agents have been said to be sending iPads preloaded with Crawford-centric material to interested teams, so either the Rangers are interested in being the new Yankees or Nolan Ryan is going cheap for his wife's Chirstmas present and will re-gift the iPad -- either way, Sports Illustrated 's Jon Heyman tweets the Rangers are talking to Carl Crawford.

The Rangers, who are also shopping for big-ticket item Cliff Lee. They've also expressed interest in bringing back Vladimir Guerrero and there have been talks linking them to trading for Zack Greinke.

An outfield of Crawford, Josh Hamilton and Nelson Cruz doesn't sound too bad, though, does it?

Or perhaps it's just a smokescreen by Crawford's people to add more potential bidders, now that it appears the Red Sox would prefer the right-handed hitting Jayson Werth is a better fit for them.

-- C. Trent Rosecrans

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The Red Sox are making a bid for some players who will cost big money, but they also apparently have interest in a big acquisition that would be paid in players.

An ESPNBoston.com report says Boston general manager Theo Epstein has been talking with Padres counterpart (and former Epstein assistant) Jed Hoyer about a deal that would bring big-hitting first baseman Adrian Gonzalez to the Red Sox. Gonzalez, who batted .298/.393/.511 with 31 homers and 101 RBI last season, will be a free agent after next season, and he'll be well out of the Padres' price range. San Diego had the second-smallest payroll in the majors last season.

Moving Gonzalez is a tough decision for the Padres. He's far and away their best offensive player (while he had 101 RBI last season, no other Padre had more than 58), he's popular and he's affordable for next season ($5.5 million). And the Padres, who missed the playoffs by one game after their offense couldn't score enough to support their stellar pitching, won't be able to come near replacing his offense at the same price.

Still, that's how small-payroll teams compete: Make great, cheap acquisitions, then make great trade decisions when moving them prior to free agency. And the Padres seem uniquely positioned to judge this trade, given that Hoyer, assistant GM Jason McLeod, and Josh Byrnes, hired Friday as San Diego's vice president of baseball operations, all worked for the Red Sox and know their prospects well. You wouldn't figure they'll get fleeced, nor will they make a deal that doesn't bring enough back. (Here is a Baseball America 's analysis of Boston's top prospects.)

Perhaps the best part of this deal from Boston's perpective would be that they would add an elite offensive player with virtually no effect on their pursuit of big-hitting free agents Jayson Werth and Carl Crawford. Imagine how scary Boston's lineup would look with all three.

Interestingly, this news came out hours after the Red Sox met with Scott Boras about free-agent third baseman Adrian Beltre. If Boston loses Beltre, the plan would be to move Kevin Youkilis to third, freeing up first base. The pursuit of Gonzalez could signal that the Red Sox are planning for life after Beltre.

-- David Andriesen

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The Yankees have been in contact with Carl Crawford, as ESPN 's Buster Olney reports.

While New York is full up in the outfield, no winter would be complete without New York talking to all the top available free agents. Crawford, the top position player on the market, is expected to wait out Cliff Lee's signing as it could impact his own market.

Should the Yankees fail to sign Lee, the scuttlebutt has then turning to Crawford instead. They could shift one of their outfielders to a backup role, or more likely, swap the player for a starting pitcher.

You also can't rule out both Crawford and Lee signing with New York, but it's not known whether the Yankees have the resources to import both.

-- Evan Brunell

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