Game On! A-Gon to Red Sox Back On

I've been away from the computer all day, so forgive me for not being on top of all of today's news.  Let's recap:

2:45 pm:  Jon Heyman reports the deal fell through.

2:55 pm:  Heyman adds that Gonzalez was looking for an 8 year deal, while the Red Sox preferred a 6 year deal.  The Red Sox couldn't have been surprised by A-Gon's request.  Pretty much every rumor over the past few months has had him looking for a contract similar to either Mark Teixeira or Ryan Howard. 

3:00 pm:  Ken Rosenthal reports while the Red Sox might still make the deal, they're apprehensive about giving up that many prospects for what might amount to being a one year rental.  While I agree with this sentiment to an extent, I only agree if it's unlikely either side will come to terms.

3:25 pm:  Jon Paul Morosi tweets the deal "is not done yet".

3:45 pm:  Morosi adds it's better than a 50/50 chance the deal will not get completed.

7:44 pm:  Peter Abraham reports that not only is A-Gon still in Boston, but the trade may go through without a contract in place.

8:00 pm:  Jon Heyman reports the A-Gon for Kelly, Rizzo, and Fuentes has been finalized.  While there isn't an extension at this point, the Red Sox are confident one can be worked out. 

(Special thanks to Drew Silva of NBC's Hardball Talk for posting a lot of the links I used above.  His work made my work easier.)

So there you have it.  It's been a whirlwind day on the A-Gon/Red Sox front.  The Red Sox had to finalize this trade.  Theo Epstein has coveted Gonzalez for years.  He's the middle of the order power bat they've sorely needed for the last three seasons.  With Jayson Werth off of the market (more on that later), the Red Sox knew that their quest for Carl Crawford had just gotten exponentially more difficult.  Finalizing this deal does quite a bit to balancing the power balance between the Yankees and Red Sox.