January 16, 2012 at 2:56 PM
Padilla signs minor league deal with Boston
As first reported by Peter Gammons on Twitter, the Red Sox have agreed to a minor league deal with veteran right-hander Vicente Padilla.
Padilla, 34, originally signed as an international free agent with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 1998. The right-hander made his major league debut with Arizona in 1999 before being traded to the Philadelphia Phillies as part of a package for Curt Schilling. After spending his entire career in the bullpen, Padilla was moved to the rotation by the Phillies in 2002 and went 14-11 with a 3.28 ERA, earning his lone career All-Star selection.
Padilla boasts a 140-90 record with a 4.31 ERA and a 2:1 strikeout to walk ratio over his 13 year major league career with the Diamondbacks, Phillies, Rangers and Dodgers. Last year as a member of the Dodgers, Padilla appeared in just 9 games out of the bullpen, posting a 4.15 ERA with 3 saves after battling multiple injuries all season. He has been pitching in Nicaragua this winter and has shown that he is pitching well with his normal velocity, giving the Red Sox hope he can regain the form that made him a servicable starter for the better part of the last decade.
The Red Sox now seem to have multiple candidates for the fifth spot in the rotation with Padilla, Aaron Cook, Carlos Silva and Andrew Miller all looking to compete in Spring Training.