Major League Baseball hot stove: Nathan Eovaldi signs 4-year deal with Red Sox

The Red Sox officially announced Nathan Eovaldi's four-year contract on Thursday night, welcoming back into the fold their most unlikely postseason hero.

Shortly thereafter, MLB.com's Mark Feinsand reported that the number of teams pursuing Eovaldi at this point appears to be just one. This includes current free agent Nathan Eovaldi. The New York Yankees reportedly were interested in Eovaldi but did not want to go past three years on a deal. The Red Sox acquired him for left-handed prospect Jalen Beeks on July 25 and Eovaldi went 3-3 with a 3.33 ERA in Boston.

The erstwhile starter, who pitched six innings in relief in the team's 18-inning, Game 3 loss, received a huge cheer whenever his name was mentioned by the dignitaries who shared the stage with the four World Series trophies the team has won since 2004.

A popular figure in free agency and particularly in Boston, Eovaldi would return to a rotation of Chris Sale, David Price and Rick Porcello. He also threw a cut-fastball 32 percent of the time, a career high in his second season using the pitch.

"I told him how proud I was of him", Cora said. He missed the final seven weeks of the 2016 season, the entire 2017 season, and the first two months of the 2018 season.

Eovaldi delivered back-to-back flawless eighth innings in both Game 1 and 2 at Fenway Park to help Boston take a 2-0 lead before heading to Los Angeles. That mix made Eovaldi particularly tough on the Yankees and their right-handed lineup, as he allowed just one earned run over 23 innings and limited NY hitters to a.367 OPS after his move to the Red Sox.

The Yankees spent a king's ransom last season to acquire NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton from the Miami Marlins.