CARLSBAD, Calif. — The Boston Red Sox have made a multi-year offer to free agent Eduardo Rodriguez, MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reported Wednesday.

Boston already extended Rodriguez a one-year, $18.4 million qualifying offer that he has until Nov. 17 at 5 p.m. to reject or accept. But the qualifying offer doesn’t preclude the two sides from agreeing on another contract.

MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reported earlier that  Wednesday the Detroit Tigers also have “early interest” in Rodriguez.

“Without getting too deep into those types of conversations, no reason they shouldn’t be ongoing even though he has a time clock and a decision that he has to make,” chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said Monday at the GM Meetings about conversations with Rodriguez. “I think when there’s mutual interest in some kind of longer-term deal, it makes sense to talk as much as you can and to keep that line of communication open. So I expect that will happen.”

Bloom also spoke generally about if the Red Sox will offer any contracts to their own players or make any deals with other teams during the GM Meetings this week.

“I think it will mostly be laying ground work (here), but it might not entirely be,” Bloom said. “If we do make offers, we’re not going to broadcast them. But different players move on different timetables. … We just want to make sure that if somebody else wants to work with a certain timetable, that we’re responsive. And if it’s something that makes sense for us that we can push, we’ll do it.”

THE RED SOX are one of multiple teams with interest in free-agent starting pitcher Steven Matz, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported.

Matz, a 30-year-old lefty, went 14-7 with a 3.82 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, 144 strikeouts and 43 walks in 150 2/3 innings for the Blue Jays in 2021. He has a 4.24 ERA in 141 career outings (136 starts).

AGENT SCOTT BORAS said J.D. Martinez chose to stay with the Red Sox because he is comfortable playing in Boston and wanted to have another productive season before hitting free agency.

The designated hitter opted in to the final year of his contract instead of electing free agency. He will earn $19.35 million in 2022, then become eligible for free agency next offseason.

“J.D. looked at his situation. He’s comfortable in Boston and he got his swing back,” Boras said at the GM Meetings. “Where 2020 was disruptive for him, he started working and getting his swing back. And he wanted to be the best version of himself when he hit free agency. And he thought he would do that after another season in Boston where he’s comfortable. And the ownership there has supported this decision and told him they’re going to make every effort to make the team even more competitive. So he’s decided to return.”

Martinez also had the ability to opt out after the 2019 and 2020 seasons. But he declined each of the three opt outs.
Boras said the opt-outs were put in place to give Martinez options.

“And he got to really use that to evaluate every circumstance that was available to him,” Boras said. “And obviously sometimes opt outs are used and sometimes they’re not.”

Martinez, 34, batted .286 with a .349 on-base percentage, .518 slugging percentage, .867 OPS, 28 homers, 42 doubles, three triples, 92 runs and 99 RBI in 148 games. His 42 doubles were tied for the major league lead.