Mookie Betts denies report of Red Sox offering $300 million, ahead of his return to Fenway Park
BOSTON -- Mookie Betts is mere days away from returning to Fenway Park, the baseball home where he said he grew up.
Before doing that, though, he is seeking to clear the air a bit regarding his departure from the team in 2020.
At the time, Betts was entering the final year of his contract, and he was due to become a very, very rich man. The Red Sox determined that they could not sign him, so they traded him to the Dodgers, getting Alex Verdugo, Connor Wong and Jeter Downs in return.
One report from Lou Merloni said that the Red Sox had offered Betts a 10-year, $300 million contract. Speaking with The Boston Globe's Pete Abraham this week in Cleveland, Betts said that offer was never put forth by the Red Sox.
"That never happened," Betts said of the reported $300 million offer. "I know that's out there and people say what they've got to say. But no, they didn't do that. They didn't."
While Betts has clearly moved on to greener pastures in Los Angeles, he still insists he would have loved to remain in Boston for his entire career.
"Most people don't believe it, but why would I lie about that? I did. That was my team," Betts told Abraham. "Just because I didn't take an offer didn't mean I didn't want to be there. There's a business component to the game. We were looking for houses in Boston. We thought it was going to work out. I thought both sides were playing the slow game and it would eventually work out. We were negotiating, that's what I thought."
As for his first game in Fenway Park as a visiting player, Betts admitted in a separate interview that he's feeling nervous.
"This will be my first time going back since 2019. I'm really nervous. Like, I'm really nervous," Betts told current teammate and fellow former Red Sox outfielder Kiké Hernandez on "On Base With Mookie Betts" on Bleacher Report. "Not necessarily -- it's more just that I haven't been back in so long, and it's like where I grew up and I don't know what to expect. Hopefully, it's cool though. I think it'll be fun. I'm gonna go in there and see the clubhouse. The clubhouse is new -- a lot of new things, a lot of new faces. I'm more excited to see the people, though. The people are what I remember the most. They made the most of the experience."
Hernandez assured Betts that he'd be "filled with love" throughout the experience.
"I can tell those fans love you, bro. They still do," Hernandez told Betts. "I saw a lot of No. 50 jerseys still every day, so they miss you, bro. You did a lot for that team."
