Righthander Nate Eovaldi declined his qualifying offer from the Red Sox Tuesday, making him a free agent. MLB qualifying offers for 2023 were set at $19.65 million.
There have been talks recently surrounding Eovaldi potentially signing a multiyear deal with the Red Sox, and an MLB source said the sides would continue to discuss that possibility.
In declining the qualifying offer, Eovaldi now can negotiate with all 30 teams. If he leaves Boston, the Sox would get a compensatory pick between the fourth and fifth rounds of the next MLB draft. But the signing team would have to give up either a second-round pick (if it has not spent past the luxury-tax threshold in 2022) or a second- and a fifth-round pick (if it has spent past the threshold).
In an expected move, Xander Bogaerts also declined his qualifying offer. At $19.65 million, the offer was less than the annual average value of the three years remaining on his previous contract, which he opted out of after the conclusion of the World Series.
Eovaldi is coming off a season largely defined by injuries, something that has followed the righthander throughout his career. He made just 20 starts and pitched 109⅓ innings.
It appeared that Eovaldi’s best scenario would have been to agree to the qualifying offer, bet that he’d have a bounce-back year, and hit the free agent market again at the end of next season.
However, it is clear that Eovaldi believes it is better for him to explore his options now as a free agent.
Alex Speier of the Globe staff contributed to this report.
Julian McWilliams can be reached at julian.mcwilliams@globe.com. Follow him @byJulianMack.