Most baseball fans already assumed this, but Red Sox principal owner John Henry confirmed on Thursday that the Sox took part in August's megadeal with the Dodgers for financial reasons.
Henry called in to WEEI's Mut & Merloni Thursday to address a Fox Business report stating that ownership was looking to sell the team. Henry denied the report, calling it "just not true," but he also discussed some other topics, including president Larry Lucchino's future, Bobby Valentine's status and the August blockbuster that sent Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford, Josh Beckett and Nick Punto to Los Angeles.
The Red Sox sent more than $250 million in salaries to the Dodgers as part of the blockbuster trade, which should help Boston greatly as they build a contender going forward.
"We did it for one reason and one reason only: To provide payroll flexibility," Henry said Thursday.
It remains to be seen what the Red Sox do with their newfound flexibility, but Henry noted that the team needs to add more depth.
