Jason Grilli's agent, Gary Sheffield (yes, the Gary Sheffield) says that eight teams are interested in his client, with the Red Sox being one of those.
"We’ve got eight teams" — including the Red Sox — "interested right now," said Grilli’s agent, former major leaguer Gary Sheffield. "We have three offers right now." Sheffield, who runs Gary Sheffield Management in Tampa, which advises players on personal finances, said, "We’re not in a hurry. There are some things we want to look at a little further. We’re not sure the market has fully developed for Jason."
It would be great to have Grilli back, particularly given the likelihood that Joel Hanrahan will be traded at some point in the next eight months. But given the level of interest in Grilli (given the way he performed this year, there's no reason to doubt Sheffield's claim that eight teams want him) and his age (he turned 36 last week), this may be a situation where the Pirates have to back off and try to find another Jason Grilli on the cheap somewhere else. It's not guaranteed, or frankly even all that likely, that Grilli will still be a good pitcher in two or three years, and the last thing the Pirates should want is to make a multi-year commitment to an aging reliever, particularly when it's often possible to find potentially good ones in the minor leagues. Still, though, Grilli and the Pirates each owe the other a big "thank you" -- Grilli to the Pirates for giving him a chance to resurrect his career, and the Pirates to Grilli for pitching like a complete mensch.
Via MLB Trade Rumors.