J.D. Martinez, whose meticulous approach to every at-bat made him one of baseball’s best hitters the past few years, has decided to not opt of his five-year contract with the Red Sox that will pay him $23.75 million in 2020, according to a league source.
The decision means the Red Sox will have a player who hit over .300 and more than 35 home runs each of the past two seasons back in the lineup, but complicates matters as the team tries to move toward its goal of getting the payroll below the luxury tax threshold of $208 million in 2020.