Red Sox Sign Mark Prior

The Sox are hungry for pitching. So why not take a shot at Mark Prior? He signed a minor league deal and will go down to Fort Myers to pitch in extended spring training. After he builds some arm strength, he'll likely be assigned to a minor league team.

Prior was the 2nd overall pick in the 2001 draft. He won 18 games in 2003. That was the year of the Steve Bartman incident.

But he hasn't thrown a pitch in the Majors since 2006. Last year the Yankees gave him a shot, but it didn't work out. Before that the Tigers and Padres rolled the dice, lost, and moved on.

Prior's career has been plagued by injuries. His mechanics have been cited by some as the root cause of those injuries.

The guy once had it. The odds of him being a successful Major Leaguer are slim. But why not take the shot? The Sox aren't loaded with relief pitchers at the moment. So roll the dice.