Gonzalez On Contract: 'Grateful For This Opportunity'

BOSTON (CBS) - The Red Sox got their power hitting first baseman over the winter. Now they have him locked up for years to come.

The Red Sox and Adrian Gonzalez agreed to a seven-year contract extension on Friday, a deal that will keep him in a Red Sox uniform through 2018.

"I'm really grateful for this opportunity," Gonzalez said. "I'm real excited about being able to play here for the next seven years, hopefully longer."

"I believe this will go down as a great day for the organization," General Manager Theo Epstein said. "Adrian is going to make a major impact here for a long time."

The deal was a no-brainer for both sides.

"Everything that Adrian brings to the table from an offensive standpoint, we feel he's among the very best hitters in the game," Esptein added.

"It's a great organization, a great fan base," Gonzalez said. "We haven't gotten off to the best start, but right now we're in a position were even through these tough times I see the great fan base, the great city of Boston. I'm just really looking forward to start getting W's under our belt and making our way towards the playoffs and potentially winning some World Series."

Gonzalez, who is hitting .268 with a home run and seven RBIs in his first 11 games with Boston, will make $154 million over the life of the deal. The new contract will not go into effect until next season, and includes a $6 million signing bonus.

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Gonzalez is happy to get the deal done now, instead of testing the free agent waters next winter.

"I'm the kind of person that wants to focus on winning," Gonzalez said. "When the focus isn't on the team, from my personal standpoint that's not where I want to be. I want to be where, let's forget about everything else and lets focus on winning and being part of a team. This is something that takes those questions out of the way. Let's focus on what we need to focus on the field to start winning."

"It's a place where I'm going to have a lot of fun. I'm going to really enjoy playing here," he said. "You cant find a better place for this opportunity, so I didn't need to get to free agency."