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The Diamondbacks had built their team by giving out contracts with large amounts of deferred money.<ref>Chass, Murray. "In Arizona, Signed, Sealed and Deferred"; ''New York Times'', 3 March 2001</ref> In late 2003, those deals caught up with them. The team decided to make cutbacks in player payroll to avoid major financial difficulties. While looking for contracts to move, Schillings eight-figure deal was one that quickly came up. Unfortunately, his deal included a full no-trade clause. He indicated that he would only accept a trade to the Phillies or Yankees.<ref name="feeding2">Mnookin, Seth. (2006). ''Feeding the Monster: How Money, Smarts, and Nerve Took a Team to the Top'', Simon & Schuster, Pages 242-245</ref> He also demanded a contract extension as part of any deal. The Phillies indicated that they weren't interested after the way Schilling left town in 2000. Arizona was unable to work out an agreement with the Yankees. When former Phillies manager [[Terry Francona]] became the frontrunner for Boston's managerial opening, Schilling agreed to add the Red Sox to his list of approved teams. The teams quickly agreed to a deal; Schilling to Boston in exchange for pitchers [[Brandon Lyon]] and [[Casey Fossum]], along with two others from Boston's farm system.

The Diamondbacks had built their team by giving out contracts with large amounts of deferred money.<ref>Chass, Murray. "In Arizona, Signed, Sealed and Deferred"; ''New York Times'', 3 March 2001</ref> In late 2003, those deals caught up with them. The team decided to make cutbacks in player payroll to avoid major financial difficulties. While looking for contracts to move, Schillings eight-figure deal was one that quickly came up. Unfortunately, his deal included a full no-trade clause. He indicated that he would only accept a trade to the Phillies or Yankees.<ref name="feeding2">Mnookin, Seth. (2006). ''Feeding the Monster: How Money, Smarts, and Nerve Took a Team to the Top'', Simon & Schuster, Pages 242-245</ref> He also demanded a contract extension as part of any deal. The Phillies indicated that they weren't interested after the way Schilling left town in 2000. Arizona was unable to work out an agreement with the Yankees. When former Phillies manager [[Terry Francona]] became the frontrunner for Boston's managerial opening, Schilling agreed to add the Red Sox to his list of approved teams. The teams quickly agreed to a deal; Schilling to Boston in exchange for pitchers [[Brandon Lyon]] and [[Casey Fossum]], along with two others from Boston's farm system.

With the deal agreed to, [[Major League Baseball]] granted the Red Sox a 72-hour window to negotiate a contract extension with Schilling. Team executives [[Theo Epstein]] and [[Jed Hoyer]] flew to Schilling's Arizona home to talk with the pitcher, who acted as his own agent.<ref name="feeding2"/> They alleviated his concerns about pitching at [[Fenway Park]] by showing him a statistical analysis that showed that a pitcher like Schilling could be successful at the park. The two executives, along with Larry Lucchino, pitched him on the benefits of playing in Boston. Schilling: "The preparation they did in getting ready was big for me."<ref name="feeding2"/> When discussions went long, Schilling offered to have Hoyer and Epstein spend Thanksgiving with his family. Following Thanksgiving dinner, the two sides continued negotiations. While they were able to agree on the term, two years plus an option, they were still far apart on a salary. During breaks in the talks, Schilling spent time chatting with Red Sox fans on a team internet message board<ref name="feeding2"/> With the 72-hour window nearing a close, they reached a compromise where Schilling would receive a bonus, and have the option year guaranteed, if he took the team to a World Series win.<ref>http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=stark_jayson&id=1683054</ref> The deal was officially completed on November 28 of that year<ref>Hermoso, Rafael. "Red Sox Ace Out the Yankees And Get Schilling for 3 Years";''New York Times'', 29 November 2003.

With the deal agreed to, [[Major League Baseball]] granted the Red Sox a 72-hour window to negotiate a contract extension with Schilling. Team executives [[Theo Epstein]] and [[Jed Hoyer]] flew to Schilling's Arizona home to talk with the pitcher, who acted as his own agent.<ref name="feeding2"/> They alleviated his concerns about pitching at [[Fenway Park]] by showing him a statistical analysis that showed that a pitcher like Schilling could be successful at the park. The two executives, along with Larry Lucchino, pitched him on the benefits of playing in Boston. Schilling: "The preparation they did in getting ready was big for me."<ref name="feeding2"/> When discussions went long, Schilling offered to have Hoyer and Epstein spend Thanksgiving with his family. Following Thanksgiving dinner, the two sides continued negotiations. While they were able to agree on the term, two years plus an option, they were still far apart on a salary. During breaks in the talks, Schilling spent time chatting with Red Sox fans on a team internet message board<ref name="feeding2"/> With the 72-hour window nearing a close, they reached a compromise where Schilling would receive a bonus, and have the option year guaranteed, if he took the team to a World Series win.<ref>http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=stark_jayson&id=1683054</ref>  

 

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