Red Sox, John Farrell Agree on Contract Extension

FORT MYERS, FL - The Boston Red Sox today extended manager John Farrell's contract through the 2017 season with a club option for 2018. Executive Vice President/General Manager Ben Cherington made the announcement. 

Farrell, 52, is entering his third season as manager of the Red Sox. He became the 46th manager in Red Sox history in October 2012 after being acquired from the Toronto Blue Jays.  

Over his first two seasons with Boston, Farrell has led the club to a combined 168-156 (.519) record and the 2013 World Series Championship. In 2013, he became just the sixth skipper to win a World Series with Boston, and only the fourth to do it in his first year at the helm.  

Farrell finished second in 2013 AL Manager of the Year voting and was named AL Manager of the Year by the Sporting News after guiding Boston to a 97-65 record, tied with the St. Louis Cardinals for the best mark in baseball. The Red Sox took first place in the AL East and went on to win 11 of 16 postseason games in securing the Fall Classic.

Last season, he saw 55 players and 19 rookies contribute to the Red Sox, both his most as a manager as the club finished fifth in the division at 71-91 (.438). He piloted the AL to a 5-3 win over the National League in the 2014 All-Star Game at Minnesota's Target Field. 

In four years as a major league manager for the Blue Jays (2011-12) and Red Sox (2013-14), Farrell has a career record of 322-326 (.497).  

Overall, he is entering his seventh season in the Red Sox organization after spending his first four years with the team as the major league pitching coach from 2007-10. The Red Sox won the World Series in 2007, his first year in that role. He was the 2009 recipient of the Red Sox Good Guy Award from the Boston Chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America. 

In 116 major league games (109 starts) over an eight-year pitching career with the Indians (1987-90, 1995), Angels (1993-94), and Tigers (1996), Farrell went 36-46 with a 4.56 ERA. In his first three seasons, the right-hander was 28-25 with a 3.86 ERA and 12 complete games. He won a career-high 14 games in 1988 and had a 3.63 ERA (84 ER/208.0 IP) in 1989, when he made a career-best 31 starts. Injuries then hampered him and caused him to miss all of 1991 and 1992. Cleveland selected him in the second round of the 1984 June Draft out of Oklahoma State University.  

Farrell is just the third Red Sox manager who had a previous pro career as a pitcher. The others were Cy Young, who served as player/manager for the first 6 games of the 1907 season, and Joe Kerrigan, who skippered the final 43 games of 2001.

He became the seventh manager in major league history acquired by a club while under contract to another on October 21, 2012, when he joined the Red Sox and agreed to a three-year contract through the 2015 season. Boston sent shortstop Mike Aviles as compensation to Toronto, to whom he was under contract through 2013, and received right-handed pitcher David Carpenter.

Before his stint as Red Sox pitching coach, Farrell spent five years as Director of Player Development for the Indians from November 2001-November 2006, overseeing one of the best farm systems in baseball. Following his playing career, he returned to Oklahoma State, earned his bachelor's in 1996, and served five seasons (1997-2001) as an assistant coach and pitching and recruiting coordinator.