Red Sox Eyeing Renteria
Four-year deal worth reported $40 million
By Ian Browne / MLB.com
December 12, 2004
ANAHEIM -- They've already bolstered their pitching with the addition of David Wells (pending a physical). Now the Red Sox are exploring the possibility of signing Edgar Renteria, the top shortstop on the free agent market.
The Sox met with Renteria's representatives on Saturday and are one of four teams currently in the bidding for the 29-year-old veteran.
Renteria's agents -- Barry Meister and Jeff Lane -- also met with the Cardinals, the team the shortstop has been a core member of since the 1999 season. The other two teams have yet to be divulged, but Lane said that both are American League clubs.
There were reports Saturday afternoon that the Red Sox were all but certain to land Renteria. But both sides said that wasn't the case.
"That deal is not done," Epstein said at roughly 6:30 p.m. PST on Saturday. "We had not met with Jeff Lane and Barry Meister, Edgar's representatives, until exactly an hour ago. We met for the first time. Barry was on a plane and it was funny to him and interesting to us that they were saying we signed him. We hadn't, we haven't, he's one of a number of shortstops that remain on our list."
Lane echoed those sentiments a couple of hours later.
"We didn't know anything about it and nobody knows where it came from," said Lane, who described negotiations with the Red Sox at the "exploratory" stage.
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