ESPN MLB Insider Discusses Boston Red Sox Pursuit of Extension with Young Pitcher

Speaking on 'The Brady Farkas Show' on Thursday, ESPN MLB Insider Buster Olney discussed the Boston Red Sox and their pursuit of a contract extension with starting pitcher Brayan Bello.

Earlier this week, reports circulated that the Boston Red Sox were exploring the idea of trying to lock up starting pitcher Brayan Bello long-term.

The 24-year-old is in his first full season in the big leagues after debuting in 2022 and has been a pillar of the Sox battered rotation.

He's currently 7-6 in 16 starts and has pitched to a 3.60 ERA. He's got 78 strikeouts in 90 innings and has been a stabilizing factor in the wake of injuries to Chris Sale, Corey Kluber, Tanner Houck and Garrett Whitlock.

And with the Red Sox entering Friday at 3.0 games back of the final wild card spot in the American League, they'll need him to continue to be big in the second half of the season.

A long-term extension isn't needed to happen right now, as Bello is still under team control through 2028, but it would be good for Chaim Bloom to get this done in a way that the organization couldn't with both Mookie Betts and Xander Bogaerts.

Speaking on 'The Brady Farkas Show' on WDEV Radio this week, ESPN MLB Insider Buster Olney discussed the Sox position with Bello:

"You want to buy out, especially with all the injuries that pitchers are suffering, you want to buy out potentially what could be the best years of his career and have that locked in...As you look at the franchise it feels like Bello is one of the three or four most important pieces in the franchise."

The Red Sox will open up a weekend series with the New York Mets on Friday night. First pitch is 7:10 p.m. ET.

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