FORT MYERS, Fla. — Hours after Red Sox owner John Henry said talk of collusion in free-agent negotiations was "ridiculous," his team made a splash by reaching agreement with slugger J.D. Martinez on a $110 million, five-year contract.
About half the 166 players who exercised free-agency rights in November remain unsigned.
"There are a lot of factors, I think, driving it, and I think they've all been identified," Henry said Monday as Boston began full-squad workouts. "There's a lot of factors that have driven this offseason, and you just can't expect every season to be a feeding frenzy, so to speak.