The Boston Red Sox are signing former Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Patrick Sandoval

The Boston Red Sox have reached an agreement with free agent starting pitcher Patrick Sandoval, ESPN’s Jeff Passan was first to report Friday morning.

Sandoval, a 28-year-old left-hander, underwent internal braces in June to repair a torn ACL in his throwing arm. As a result, he is expected to miss at least the first half of the 2025 season.

The Los Angeles Angels did not sign Sandoval in November, making him a free agent. MLB trade rumors had him set to make $5.9 million in arbitration, and the Angels apparently weren’t willing to pay that much to retain one of their most experienced pitchers.

Sandoval appears to have made the most of the opportunity, as Passan reported that his contract with the Red Sox will be worth $18.25 million over two seasons. According to Alex Speier of the Boston Globe, Sandoval will make $5.5 million in 2025 and $12.75 million in 2026.

In the 16 starts he made in 2024 before going down, Sandoval was 2-8 with a 5.08 ERA, a 1.506 WHIP, 9.2 strikeouts per nine innings and a 0.0 WAR.

Sandoval’s peak came in 2022, when he went 6-9 with a 2.91 ERA, 1.339 WHIP, 9.1 strikeouts per nine innings and a 3.3 WAR. Between 2021 and 2023, he compiled a record of 16-28, 3.53 ERA, 1.375 WHIP, 8.8 strikeouts per nine innings and a WAR of 5.8 in 72 appearances.

Boston now has another pitcher to undergo elbow surgery through 2025, and Sandoval joins Garrett Whitlock, Lucas Giolito, Liam Hendriks and Michael Fulmer. Whitlock probably won’t be back until the All-Star break, while Giolito, Hendriks and Fulmer should at least give it a shot in free agency.

The Red Sox were previously linked to John Means, another starter who had elbow surgery, but now that Sandoval is in play, they will likely be without the Baltimore Orioles’ longtime left-hander.

Garrett Crochet, Brayan Bello and Tanner Houck are expected to form the top half of Boston’s rotation entering 2025. With Whitlock, Giolito and Sandoval all injured, the final two spots could go to swingmen Kutter Crawford and Cooper Criswell – or newcomer Richard Fitts – unless another move is on the horizon.

And while the investment isn’t that big, the Boston front office is certainly hoping things go better with this P. Sandoval than they did with the last guy they signed – long-time San Francisco Giants third baseman Pablo Sandoval, the one after that Posted a WAR of -1.6 in 161 games. In 2015, he signed a five-year, $95 million contract with the Red Sox.

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