Red Sox Officially Over Final Luxury Tax Threshold After Trades

The Red Sox did not make any moves yesterday ahead of the MLB trade deadline, but Red Sox President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski acknowledged for the first time publicly that the team's payroll has "broken through the final luxury tax threshold" of $237M due to earlier acquisitions, according to Bill Koch of the PROVIDENCE JOURNAL. The additions of 1B Steve Pearce, P Nathan Eovaldi and 2B Ian Kinsler will result in the Red Sox being charged a 62.5% tax on "all overages and see them docked 10 spots on their first pick" in the '19 Draft. Dombrowski said, "Penalties are not things you normally want to incur. I think it speaks a great deal to our ownership, that they’re willing to give us the financial wherewithal and pay the penalties that we are to help us win" (PROVIDENCE JOURNAL, 8/1). Dombrowski said that he "didn’t think the penalty was too severe." He added, "We have a chance to win, so we’re all in. And that’s what ownership has expressed that they’re willing to do with us" (BOSTON HERALD, 8/1).