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Ryan Dempster announces that he won't pitch in 2014 and will walk away from his $13.25 million contract.
(Jason Mastrodonato/Masslive.com)
Not many guys walk away from $13.25 million as a matter of principle, but Ryan Dempster did.
Dempster said Sunday his decision not to pitch in 2014 was made because he does not feel physically or emotionally ready to earn the money. Nevertheless, the Red Sox were on the hook for the second year of Dempster's contract, whether he threw an inning or not.
He knew it, and so did Boston. His decision to forfeit the money and sit out the season was more than just admirable, it was noble and rare.
Dempster's announcement was followed by several questions that circulated in the media. Would the Red Sox use the extra money to finally lock up Stephen Drew?
Would Dempster pursue a TV career? Did his decision come out of suspicion he might be traded to solve Boston's six-starter dilemma, or because he might pitch out of the bullpen?
By all evidence, the answers are no, no, no and no. Dempster has been nagged by a neck injury, and he also desired to spend more time with his family.
Dempster's 5-year-old daughter has a treatable genetic disorder. His devotion to her is limitless.
His decision to sit out the season recalls a similar choice by Keith Foulke with Cleveland in 2007.
Signed to a one-year, $5 million deal, Foulke told the Indians he was leaving because he wasn't physically up to the task. The former Red Sox closer could have easily reported to Cleveland's camp, wound up on the disabled list and collected his salary.
General manager Mark Shapiro and manager Eric Wedge praised the integrity of Foulke, who returned to pitch 31 games for Oakland in 2008. Similarly, Dempster has kept the door open for a return in 2015, when he will be a free agent.
Had he not walked away from the Red Sox, he would have received his salary (nearly three times the amount of Foulke's 2007 deal) but with obligations.
The Red Sox would have expected him to either stay with the team or rehab in Fort Myers, with the goal of being physically healthy to pitch again. That would have curtailed his family time and put him in a professional no man's land he did not desire.
Dempster's 2013 season will best be remembered for his beaning of Alex Rodriguez. The August incident rallied the New York Yankees around a teammate they truly disliked and risked disrupting Boston's momentum.
What Dempster did was ill-advised and unwise, but it did reflect a pitcher of unbending principles.
The reasons were never elaborated, but it was clear that at some point, Rodriguez had offended Dempster. To some people, standards are not so easily shelved, even when they ought to be.
Dempster probably cost himself more than $13.25 million this week. His agent will presumably get his full cut on the two-year contract, even as the pitcher walked away from the second year.
Dempster has made $89 million in baseball, but that does not diminish an act of character by a man who never wanted a dollar he did not think he was earning.
The Red Sox have at least five other starters, but he will be missed. And if Dempster does decide to pitch again in 2015, the team he has just left would do well to sit down with him and talk about it.