OXON HILL, Md. — The Boston Red Sox exercised the 2018 option on Manager John Farrell’s contract Monday.
Farrell won the World Series in his first season with the Red Sox in 2013 and led them back to the playoffs last year. He’s 339-309 in four seasons in Boston.
Dave Dombrowski, the president of baseball operations, said Farrell has “done a real fine job” and extending the manager’s deal gives the Red Sox some stability on their staff going into spring training. He said there wasn’t any special timing about announcing it now, noting it didn’t have to be exercised until after the 2017 season.
Farrell said he appreciated the confidence from Dombrowski.
n The Red Sox could be far more conservative this offseason because of baseball’s new luxury tax rules.
Dombrowski said the new collective bargaining agreement’s stricter penalties for spending above a certain payroll threshold could factor into the team’s plans. His top priority is to find an eighth-inning reliever and another bat.
TWINS: Minnesota promoted Deron Johnson to senior adviser of scouting and Sean Johnson to director of scouting.
Both have been in the organization for years and will continue with the team even after Derek Falvey and Thad Levine took over the baseball operations department.
ASTROS: Carlos Beltran and the team finalized a $16 million, one-year contract.
The Astros have been busy boosting their lineup since missing the playoffs, trading for catcher Brian McCann and adding free-agent outfielder Josh Reddick.
CUBS: The team said the average season-ticket price at Wrigley Field will climb 19.5 percent next season. The best seats will go up the most: 31 percent for club box infield seats and 22 percent for seats in the bleachers. Other seats will go up between 6 percent and 17 percent.
The increase marks the second straight season that the team has raised the face value of its tickets by at least 10 percent.
GIANTS: San Francisco agreed to a $62 million, four-year contract with closer Mark Melancon, pending a physical.
Because Melancon was traded during the season, the Giants don’t have to give up their first pick in June’s amateur draft as compensation.
DODGERS: Los Anmgeles signed free-agent pitcher Rich Hill to a three-year contract after he went 3-2 with a 1.83 ERA in six starts with the team he joined at the trade deadline.
Hill, a 36-year-old left-hander, was acquired Aug. 1 in a five-player trade with Oakland. Hill was 1-1 with a 3.46 ERA in three postseason starts for the Dodgers, including tossing six scoreless innings to win Game 3 of the NL Championship Series against the Chicago Cubs.
BLUE JAYS: Toronto signed utility player Steve Pearce to a two-year, $12.5 million contract.
The Blue Jays were in need of a first baseman and corner outfielders because they might not sign free agents Edwin Encarnacion, Jose Bautista and Michael Saunders.
PHILLIES: A person familiar with the negotiations said reliever Joaquin Benoit and Philadelphia greed to a $7.5 million, one-year contract.
Benoit, a 39-year-old right-hander, has had an ERA under 3.00 for six of the past seven years. He was 3-1 with a 2.81 ERA last season, including a 0.38 ERA after Toronto acquired him July 26 from Seattle for reliever Drew Storen.
JAPANESE PITCHER Shohei Otani, 22, said he could move to the major leagues after the 2017 season.
Otani went 10-4 as a pitcher and batted .322 with a career-high 22 home runs this season for the Nippon Ham Fighters.
DAILY MEAL money for major leaguers is being cut from $100.50 to $30 under the new collective bargaining agreement, but teams are assuming the cost of providing clubhouse food spreads.
The change is estimated to save players about $6,000 annually because the cost of food at home games won’t be coming from their own money.
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