Red Sox Were “Mystery Team” for Cliff Lee

During the Winter Meetings there were reports that Cliff Lee had a 7-year deal on the table from a “mystery team.”  It turns out that team was the Red Sox.  Theo offered Lee a 7-year deal with a low annual salary so the price would go up for the Yankees.  The plan did get the Yankees to add a seventh year to their deal and kept them focused on the Lee negotiations, it also let Boston quickly act on Crawford before they got in the mix.