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Will J.D. Martinez Opt Out Of His Final Year With Red Sox?

BOSTON (CBS) -- Once the World Series comes to an end, Red Sox DH J.D. Martinez will have a decision to make. He could either pick up the final year of his contract with Boston, or swing for the fences on the free agent market.

Martinez has one year left on his contract with the Red Sox, which would pay him $19.35 million for the 2022 season. He may not get an annual paycheck that high if he hits free agency, but Martinez would certainly get a decent salary and at least a few more years of job security if he chooses that route.

So which fork in the road will Martinez take? The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal thinks it will be an easy decision for Martinez to opt out. The biggest question for Martinez is will he be able to get as much guaranteed money.

"Absolutely, he could," Rosenthal said on The Athletic Baseball Show podcast. 

Will the Red Sox be willing to dish that out for Martinez? Rosenthal isn't so sure on that front. He also foresees Kyle Schwarber opting out of his mutual option with the team, so Boston will have to work out a deal with their big deadline acquisition. Rosenthal also believes that the team will pick up the $7 million option on catcher Christian Vazquez, and sees starter Eduardo Rodriguez as someone the team "would ideally want back."

But Rosenthal made it clear during his podcast that finances will not be an issue for Boston this offseason.

"The Red Sox are going to spend money," he said. "How they are going to spend it, I'm not sure. How many of these players who could be gone will return? I don't know about that either."

Either way, it sounds like Chaim Bloom and company have a busy winter ahead.

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