Red Sox And Papi Still Far Apart

Reports suggest that the Red Sox and their designated hitter David Ortiz are still far apart in their salary negotiations. If the gulf continues much longer, an arbitration hearing will have to pick one of the two numbers on the table: Boston's $12.65 million or Ortiz's $16.5 million—no in between. Prior to the mid-February arbitration hearing the two sides can compromise on another figure—and even on the length of the new deal. The Red Sox pride themselves on never letting these situations get to the hearing stage, but it looks more and more likely that this one will get to that point.

Evil Empire Signs Manny Delcarmen

The kid from J.P. could be toiling in the Bronx in 2012. Amazingly, the Yankees signed former Red Sox reliever Manny Delcarmen to a minor league deal. The contract also includes an invitation to Spring Training.

Since he left the Red Sox, we have been rooting for the local kid to do well with the Rockies, et.al. Now, however, we have to hope Delcarmen (pictured here at left along with a young fan and Curt Schilling) reverts back to the form we saw at the end of his Boston career.

Dice-K Hurls First Bullpen Since Surgery

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Daisuke Matsuzaka threw his first bullpen session yesterday since his Tommy John surgery in June. According to the Mainichi Daily News, the right-hander threw a total of 21 pitches in Fort Myers and—if he feels no ill effects—will do a long-toss session on Wednesday.

If all goes well, plans have him throwing another bullpen session on Friday. Despite these heartening signs, there is still no expectation of Dice-K contributing to the team until late in 2012.

Jenny Dell Officially The New Heidi Watney

As we reported last Wednesday, NESN has named Jenny Dell as the new Heidi Watney. In addition, the network announced that former Red Sox player Matt Stairs will become part of the studio analyst team.

Dell, a Connecticut native, has spent time with ESPN, and will begin her on-air work in February.

Shortstop Still Most Troubling Sox Position

After more votes have rolled in, FN readers still consider shortstop (49.5%) to be the most troubling position on the team in 2012. While the gap between short and starting pitching has narrowed (now just 6.4 points), it's clear that the hole in the middle of the diamond is still a vexing issue for many fans. After dealing away two shortstops (Scutaro and Lowrie), the team is now left with a choice among Nick Punto, Mike Aviles and minor league phenom Jose Iglesias. If "strength up the middle" really is a mark of championship teams, we got problems.

Oswalt To Red Sox: "No, Thanks"

According to reports this morning, Roy Oswalt has told the Indians, Blue Jays and Red Sox he's not interested in joining those teams. Apparently, either St. Louis or Texas are the likely landing spots for Oswalt. What this suggests is that Boston is down to two realistic options: trading for Chicago's Gavin Floyd or signing free agent Edwin Jackson. A more remote possibility is that Bud Selig agrees to send Matt Garza to the Red Sox as compensation for Theo Epstein. Short of these moves, we will be left with a rag-tag bunch of has-beens as potential fifth starters.

Tim Wakefield Pondering Retirement

While he still hopes to get a firm offer from the Red Sox, a realistic Tim Wakefield is seriously pondering retirement. In an interview with Florida Today, Wake referenced the recent retirement of one of his contemporaries—Jorge Posada. While he won't rule out signing with another team, it sounds like it's either Boston or nothing. If this is it for Wake (pictured here with a fan), it will be the end of a remarkable run in Boston. Asked to do everything from start to close and left of post-season rosters, he never complained. He is the ultimate Red Sox team player over the last 15 years.

Sox Asked For Garza Or Vitters For Theo

The compensation talks for losing Theo Epstein drag on—despite the intervention of Bud Selig. On Friday night, at a White Sox FanFest, Selig expressed frustration that the two teams couldn't resolve the issue on their own and dropped it into his lap. Reports suggest that Boston's initial request was for Matt Garza, with another alternative being Cubs first-round pick, third-base prospect Josh Vitters (pictured). The 22-year old Vitters hit .283 at AA Tennessee last year, with 14 HRs and 81 RBIs in 129 games.

Red Sox Whiff Again, Oswalt Will Be A Card

Continuing the theme we have suffered through all off-season, the Red Sox lost out on another starting pitcher today, as Roy Oswalt decided to accept an offer from the World Champion St. Louis Cardinals. Fans will now able to purchase $12 Upper Bleacher seats to watch John Maine get eviscerated by the Kansas City Royals. Maybe Pedro will reconsider his retirement.

Forget The Maine!

Honestly, we are trying to be positive. But, day after day, the Red Sox are making it very difficult not to be at least puzzled by these off-season moves. Tonight, the Red Sox signed journeyman pitcher John Maine to a minor league contract. Are you kidding me? This guy was jettisoned by the Orioles and the Mets.

Maine does have fewer hits than innings pitched over his seven-year career, but he's a mediocre pitcher with a 4.35 ERA and is injury-prone. His career WHIP is 1.339. Come on.

NOG Implements "Digital Ticket Initiative"

I'm trying real hard to give the NOG the benefit of the doubt on their new "digital" ticket initiative. Basically, they are sequestering a bloc of $12 Upper Bleacher seats for select games to keep them away from secondary marketers. You know, the guys who jack the price up way beyond $12. The tickets can only be purchased with a credit card, and that same card must be swiped at the gate to get in. Sounds good, right? Stand-up guys looking out for the little guy fan, right?

Except, aren't the Red Sox already in bed with secondary ticket brokers (ACE with their own deal and StubHub through MLB)? Not that there's anything wrong with that—we here at FenwayNation have multiple ads from ticket brokers. But, then, why would the team announce this "Digital Ticket Initiative"? Aren't they robbing Pedro to pay Pedey?

Could an alternative interpretation be that they know fans in 2012 will not shell out, say, $95 dollars for a bealcher seat that's almost in Allston? Maybe the only way they can unload these priceless ducats is to forcibly price them at face value. It's better than empty seats during a consecutive "sellout" streak, right? I guess I'm too cyncial. I hope the NOG really is doing the right thing for the right reason.

Tom Brady: The Almost Montreal Expo

The trials and tribulations of Tom Brady at Michigan are well-documented. Behind bigger phenom Drew Henson on the quarterback depth chart, Brady seemed buried in Big Ten obscurity. But based on how his high school coach saw things, football was a long shot anyway. Brady was a star left-handed hitting catcher in high school—a 6'4" hitting and throwing machine. Major League scouts were all over him—particularly one from the Montreal Expos. Les Expos drafted him in the 18th round (about the same level of disrespect as his 6th round NFL selection later on). But the only reason for the low baseball draft position was the fear that he would live up to his commitment to play football at Michigan. It was not a commentary on his talent—which was prodigious. So, if things had gone differently, Tom Brady might be winding down his catching career with the Washington Nationals and not vying for his fourth Super Bowl ring.

Youk: 'Witch Hunt' After BlackSeptember

At his annual fundraiser for his "Youk's Kid's" charity, Red Sox third baseman Kevin Youkilis said he thought the team was subjected to a "witch hunt" from the public and media after their historic September collapse. Said Youk:

“It kind of seemed like it was a witch hunt — what player’s doing this, what player did that wrong? We’re a team. We lose as a team, and we all failed. There’s not one player that didn’t fail because we lost, and we all failed.”

It was also revealed yesterday that Youkilis has been cleared to resume all baseball activities, as he recovers from October 4th surgery for a sports hernia.

Athletics May Be Open To Signing Manny

According to multiple reports, Oakland (soon to be San Jose) Athletics owner Lew Wolff has hinted that he'd be amenable to signing Manny Ramirez. ManRam would have to serve his PED suspension for the first fifty games of his tenure with any MLB team, but the A's are so depleted by trades this off-season, it might be worth the gamble.

Cody Ross Deal Is Now Official

The Red Sox formalized a one-year contract with outfielder Cody Ross for $3 million—which also includes performance bonuses. To clear space on the 40-man roster, Boston also released pitcher Scott Atchison.

The 31-year-old Ross is a nice complementary player, but will be pressed in to pretty heavy service in the new Red Sox K-Mart Mode. Ross hit 14 home runs last year while hitting .240 with a .730 OPS.

Shortstop Most Troubling Red Sox Position

Early voting on our latest FenwayNation Poll shows that a majority (51.2%) of readers think shortstop is the most troubling position on the 2012 Red Sox.

Starting pitching places second at 39.0%, while the issues in right field lag behind at 9.8%. You can still vote in the Most Troubling Position Poll HERE.

FN Poll: Which Position Is Most Troubling?

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Four Sox Prospects Place In MLB's Top 100

Major League Baseball announced their list of the 100 top prospects in the game—and four of them are in the Red Sox system. Highest ranked was third baseman Will Middlebrooks (#56, pitcured), whose power display last year opened many an eye in the Nation. Next in the ranking was SS phenom Xander Bogaerts (#76), who many feel may also wind up at third base (creating a choice trade opportunity of one of these players for Boston). Next up was intriguing 23-year old slugging OF Bryce Brentz (#64), who clouted 19 home runs in A ball last year. Finally, Ryan Lavarnway posted at #93, a player many Red Sox fans grew to know and love last season with his pop at the plate. While Boston placed only four players in the ranking, they are all offensive forces that will insure that fans will see plenty of hitting at Fenway for years to come.

Former Sox Infielder Alex Cora To Retire

Believe it or not, there was a time when many voices in the Nation called for Alex Cora to supplant a young, shaky Dustin Pedroia at second base. Now, Cora has announced his retirement from baseball at age 36. After completing play in the Puerto Rican Winter League, Cora called it quits on his 14-year career. He spent a total of four years in Boston, hitting a respectable .252 and filling in at second, short and third base. He was a consummate professional and showed an acute knowledge of the game that many think will land him coaching responsibilities in the big leagues. We wish him well.

Former Sox Hurler Richardson Suspended

Former Red Sox left-hander Dustin Richardson was suspended for 50 games by MLB for testing positive to a range of performance enhancing drugs—including mphetamine, Letrozole and metabolite, Methandienone metabolite, Methenelone and metabolite, and Trenbolone and metabolite. Richardson showed some promise in his Red Sox tenure, but ended up playing just 29 games for the Carmine Hose. He was dealt to the then-Florida Marlins for Andrew Miller in November of 2010. Last year, the Braves picked him up off waivers from the Marlins.

Red Sox Avoid Arbitration With Bailey

The Red Sox and their new closer Andrew Bailey agreed to a one-year, $3.9 million deal—avoiding arbitration. Bailey was looking for $4.7 million, while Boston was countering with $3.5 million. Bailey will face the daunting task of filling the shoes of the best Red Sox closer ever. Papelbon, despite his many ups and downs, was a rock at the end of games—posting 217 saves over 7 seasons with 10.7 strikeouts per nine innings and a WHIP of 1.018.

Red Sox Prefer Edwin Jackson To Oswalt

UPDATE: Red Sox have offered Oswalt a one-year, $5million deal. On the heels of reports that Roy Oswalt rejected a Red Sox contract offer, word is that the team prefers Edwin Jackson to Oswalt anyway. This may be Lucchino-esque spin from Yawkey Way, but ESPN's Jim Bowden reports that Boston is now in discussions with Jackson. The 28-year old Jackson is a workhorse, 200-inning guy, but hasn't delivered the results Oswalt has. Jackson might, at this point in the off-season, be willing to lower his earlier demands (5-years, $15 million) and accept a one-year deal. We will keep you posted.

Oswalt May Have Rejected Red Sox Offer

According to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports, the Red Sox offered a contract to right-handed starter Roy Oswalt—but he may have rejected it. Word is that, after having already rejected a Detroit offer, he may prefer the Reds, Cardinals or Rangers.

Jenny Dell Is Reportedly NESN's New Heidi

Multiple reports suggest that Tom Werner (who, don't forget, gave us Roseanne Barr) has picked Heidi Watney's replacement. Word is that ESPN's Jenny Dell is NESN's choice to be the new Red Sox on-field reporter. Chances are these reports are correct, since all of Dell's reporting videos have been yanked off ESPN. This decision, of course, runs afoul of our readers' choice of Kelly Malone—who is both competent and local.

Honestly, we know nothing of Ms. Dell (pictured here at Fenway in 2010)—except that football, not baseball, appears to be her main gig. Maybe we're jumping the gun, but this decision seems to fit with all the other ones made by the NOG this off-season.

Are The Sox About To Make A Big Trade?

The Red Sox have a dilemma: a full 40-man roster and nowhere to put newcomer Cody Ross. As the Providence Journal's Brian McPherson points out, something's got to give. What that something might be is a trade—either a 2-for-1 or 3-for-1 swap for a starter or a blockbuster deal for SS Hanley Ramirez. Clearly, there is need at both positions. It's hard to believe that Boston will go to war with Nick Punto at shortstop. And 'Lester-Beckett-Buchholz-Bard-Whomever' may not be good enough to contend in the AL East. Apparently, the NOG will not spend any more significant cash on free agents like Roy Oswalt. So, a trade seems the most likely scenario—even with the depleted stock of top minor leaguers in the system. Some have suggested that teams like the re-building White Sox might take a chance or two on marginal prospects in the Sox system in exchange for a guy like Gavin Floyd. Getting Ramirez, of course, would require higher-level prospects and a major league player or two. Both are tough choices, but something needs to be done soon.

Prince Fielder Deal Has Boston Angles

In case you hadn't already noticed, everything that happens in the world has some connection to the Boston Red Sox. So it should come as no surprise that Detroit's signing of Prince Fielder has a Carmine-tinged thread through it as well. If former Boston catcher Victor Martinez had not torn his ACL, the Tigers would probably not have pursed The Big Vegetarian. With V-Mart's season-ending injury fresh in their minds, the Tabbys had to get more offense to remain the favorites in the AL Central. So, they overspent ($214 million) and over-extended (nine years) the big fella. Otherwise, he likely would have landed a deal in the National League with a far shorter term. Of course, he would also have been out of our hair. As it stands now, the Tigers are yet another obstacle to the Red Sox reaching the post-season. Even if Bud anoints another Wild Card team this year, that means six quality teams (New York, Tampa, Boston, Detroit, Texas, and Anaheim) are vying for only a maximum of five spots—maybe only four. This, of course, does not account for another surprise team or two emerging as contenders (Toronto, for example). So, while it's all connected to Boston, none of it bodes well for Boston.

Posada Gets Our Grudging Respect

In all my Yankee-hating years, I've only respected four pinstripers—Yogi Berra, Joe Torre, Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada. I didn't say like, I said respect. Posada retired today. To be honest, Posada was a borderline case—his head-pointing antics back and forth with Pedro always rubbed me the wrong way. But, Posada was an All-Star five times and had 1,664 hits over a 17-year career. And a lot of those hits were clutch, back-breaking ones against your Carmine Hose. He played hard, he played hurt, he played well. I hated seeing him come up in a key spot, didn't you? And there's another reason to respect Posada—loyalty. There are precious few players left who value being with one franchise from start to finish. Our own Jason Varitek is one. Posada is another. He probably could have caught on with someone outside the Bronx this year, but he preferred retiring. As he put it, "I could never wear another uniform. I will forever be a Yankee." Loyalty, even to the Evil Ones, has to be respected.

What's The Dissolution With J. D. Drew?

According to CBS Sports' Jon Heyman, J.D. Drew is "very likely" to retire. It's obvious the Red Sox didn't want him back, and Scott Boras wasn't carting around "the big book" much on J.D.'s behalf. While it's extremely easy to bash J.D. for his career in Boston (constant injuries, lackadaisical attitude, the famous "Statue Of Liberty" play on Jacoby's steal of home), the fact is that he was a pretty productive player. I know, I know—revisionist history through the lens of Theo Epstein. But consider this: In his five years with Boston, he hit .264 with a .370 OBP and an .824 OPS. Nothing dazzling, but certainly not a slug. He averaged 16 home runs and 57 RBI in his time here. All in all, not horrific—but certainly not enough to justify his salary. Moreover, all of these stats are below his career 162-game average. Those career numbers are: 25 HRs, 82 RBIs, .278 AVG, .384 OBP, .873 OPS. So, if he had just performed to his career norm, his legacy in Boston would have been a positive one. But, he fell short. And one heroic ALCS Grand Slam will not outweigh that failure.

Red Sox Sign OF Cody Ross

Multiple reports suggest that the Red Sox have signed former Giants OF Cody Ross to a contract ($3 million base, with incentives). Presumably, Ross would platoon in RF with Ryan Sweeney--and, at least temporarily, play left field until Carl Crawford is ready.

Scutaro Trade Paves The Way For Oswalt

UPDATE: Oswalt Turns Down Tabbies. The Red Sox traded away shortstop Marco Scutaro to Colorado for RP Clayton Mortenson. But more importantly, the move clears $6 million of salary—allowing Boston to seriously pursue Roy Oswalt. Of course, the team now basically has no legitimate shortstop—with Mike Aviles (slated to play a lot in RF), Nick Punto (a perennial back-up) and Jose Iglesias (still raw) the only players in the mix. One has to assume another move to shore up this position.

Red Sox Shake-Up Medical Staff

Just as more questions arise about Carl Crawford's recent wrist surgery, the Red Sox have shaken up their medical staff from Head Athletic Trainer to Strength and Conditioning Coach to Head Team Internist. This long overdue restructuring is a welcome sign that the Red Sox might finally be taking a critical piece of team competitiveness seriously.

Texas Inks 'Dice-K 2.0' To 6-Year $60M Deal

The American League Champion Texas Rangers significantly upgraded their rotation by signing Japanese star Yu Darvish to a 6-year, $60 million contract. With the posting fee added in, Texas committed over $111 million to the 25-year old righty—known in some circles as "Dice-K 2.0". Getting to the World Series just got a little tougher for the Red Sox. (Photos by AP Photos/Kyodo)

Red Sox Appear Twice On Sunday Night

ESPN announced their 2012 Sunday Night Baseball schedule, with the Red Sox battling the Empire twice (April 22nd and July 8th, both at Fenway Park). The Evil Ones appear a total of three times, as do the American League Champion Texas Rangers. Interestingly, the Strasburg/Harper Nationals are slated for two games.

Red Sox Are Back In On Gavin Floyd

Reports suggest that the Red Sox are back in the trade mix for White Sox right-hander Gavin Floyd. Floyd would offer only two years of salary control for Boston, but this is still better than some other starters still out there—like Edwin Jackson. Of course, trading for Floyd would mean giving up more prospects—maybe even prized third baseman Will Middlebrooks. Given the need for a proven fourth or fifth cog in the rotation, it's good that BenCher is barking up the Floyd tree. The soon to be 29-year old Floyd (January 27th) is just above .500 in his eight-year career, but in the last four years, he's averaged an ERA in the low fours (and actually of was at 3.84 in 2008 when he won 17 games). This would be an excellent pick-up for Boston.

FN Poll: Attention To Non-Baseball Ventures

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Bud Selig Will Decide Theo Compensation

Our long national nightmare may soon be over. After months of dithering between the Cubs and Red Sox, MLB Commissioner Bud Selig will now decide the compensation for Theo Epstein's departure from Boston. Give credit to Larry Lucchino on this one. His hard-nosed insistence that Selig step in resulted in the new reality. Larry has, at various times, also suggested that the loss of Epstein requires a significant player in return—actually naming Matt Garza and top Cubs prospect Brett Jackson as possibilities. Let's hope Bud resolves this quickly, as it could have a major impact on how BenCher proceeds with the starting pitching dilemma.

Red Sox Offer Big Papi The 1.2% Solution

The chasm between the Red Sox arbitration offer and the one submitted by David Ortiz is big enough to scare off Evil Knievel. Boston offered the DH a raise of 1.2% above his 2011 salary—that after hitting .309 with 29 HRs and 96 RBIs. Ortiz also played in 146 games and had a .398 OBP and a .922 OPS. I'd say that's good for at least a 1.3% raise, how about you? The puzzling thing is that if Papi goes to a hearing, he is almost assured of getting his number—$16.5 million for one year. The Red Sox can't possibly win, because in the hearing process, it's one or the other—no middle ground. This suggests that Boston has to reach a pre-hearing accommodation with Papi—but it almost needs to be for two years, since Ortiz can get his number for one year via the hearing. All very complicated, but not very smart on the NOG's part.

V-Mart Lost To Tigers For 2012 With ACL

The Tigers lost the services of former Red Sox catcher Victor Martinez, as he tore his ACL while undergoing off-season conditioning drills. All indications are that V-Mart will miss the entire 2012 season—putting a major dent in Detroit's chances. Last year, Martinez hit .330 for the Tigers. In his year-and-a-half with Boston, Victor hit .313 with 28 HRs and 120 RBIs.

Red Sox And Mike Aviles Reach Deal

The Red Sox avoided salary arbitration with another player today—infielder Mike Aviles. The pact is a one-year deal worth $1.2 million. Aviles (pictured here with fans at a BoSox Club luncheon) was a positive contributor to the team after coming over in a trade with Kansas City at the deadline. He hit a decent .255 with 7 home runs, and was more than adequate at multiple positions in the field.

Carl Crawford Has Wrist Surgery Today

The Providence Journal's Brian McPherson reports that Ben Cherington has announced that left-fielder Carl Crawford underwent left wrist surgery today—and his availability is "uncertain" for Opening Day. This is yet another "conditioning" issue that seems to surprise the Red Sox at the most inopportune times. This is, obviously, bad news for a team that needs to get off to a quick, positive start in 2012.

Ellsbury, Red Sox Agree To $8.05M Pact

The Red Sox and Jacoby Ellsbury avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $8.05 million contract for 2012. This is a big raise for the elite center-fielder. It still remains to be seen whether the massive Carl Crawford deal will prevent Boston from signing Ellsbury to a long-term deal when he hits free-agency. See a TWEET about the deal from Jacoby HERE. (Photo by Jim Rogash, Getty Images)

Fake Injury Exhibition Coming To Fenway!

Be still our National Heart! The Fenway Sports Group has announced that a soccer match will be held on the supposedly pristine turf of Fenway Park sometime this coming Summer. John Henry's plaything (Liverpool FC) will face the partly-Boston Celtic-owned AS Roma. The level of ennui we attach to this announcement is roughly equivalent to our view of Ultimate Fighting. We can't wait for being able to utilize sayings like: "nil-nil", "pitch" and "top of the table". Yawn.

Suggested Salary Dumps For The NOG

WEEI.com's Rob Bradford reports that the only way the Red Sox can think about signing Roy Oswalt is if they "move payroll" to avoid the 'Dreaded Luxury Tax'. Herewith are some of our suggestions to help the NOG pare down and make the badly-needed Oswalt signing:

1.) Fire Wally. Let's face it, his time has come and gone. Little kids are either scared of him or have moved on to more anatomically-correct mascots. This move would free up somewhere between $30-40,000 in cap space and allow the team to donate the costume to some deserving Independent League franchise for the tax deduction;

2.) Don't Hire A Replacement For Heidi Watney. Come on, be honest, she can't really be replaced anyway. And are we really substantially enlightened by any of those "sideline" interviews? This can save around $70,000—plus pancake make-up costs (about another $30,000);

3.) Cut Joe Cole and Fernando Torres From The Liverpool Roster. Frankly, we have no idea who these guys are—and, by the way NESN, we don't want to know who they are. What we do know is that cutting them would free up a whole 8 million pounds (that's $12.3 million in real money);

OK, so total it all up and you've got almost $12.5 million! That should be more than enough for a one-year contract with Oswalt. Next question?

Does Dodger-Ethier Deal Presage Trade?

The nearly bankrupt (but ridiculously over-valued) Los Angeles Dodgers of Los Angeles have come to terms with star outfielder Andre Ethier on a one-year, $10.95 million deal. Ethier is coming off a terrible year with only 11 home runs—down dramatically from his career average. The 29-year old is best buds with The Muddy Chicken (AKA Dustin Pedroia, AKA El Cabalitto) from their days at Arizona State, and it's no secret that they'd like to be re-united. Could there be a surprise deal in the offing, now that Ethier's salary is a known factor? Stay tuned.

Rest Easy, Nation! Morales Is Back!

OK, now we can coast to Spring Training with no concerns whatsoever. The Red Sox are bringing back left-handed reliever Franklin Morales. Reports suggest that the soon-to-be 26-year old and the team agreed on a one-year, $850,000 contract. The agreement avoids arbitration.

Gammons: Sox Finalize Deal With Padilla

According to Hall Of Fame writer Peter Gammons, the Red Sox have struck a deal with RHP Vicente Padilla. You know when you go to the back of Stop & Shop and rummage through the cut-rate fruit and vegetable rack? That's all you need to know about the 2012 Red Sox. Right off the "crap rack" (as my young son used to refer to it), Vicente Padilla is a 34-year old, injury-riddled starter who—at best—is a scrap heap back-of-the-rotation option. The journeyman has a 4.32 career ERA. But, in this new environment, while the Yankees seem to ignore the vagaries of the "Dreaded Luxury Tax", Boston takes another pass. Wow.

Salty And Sox Agree To One-Year Deal

Boston avoided arbitration with Jarrod Saltalamacchia by agreeing to terms on a one-year, $2.5 million deal on Sunday. Saltalamacchia bore the bulk of the catching load last season (103 games), hitting only .235 (with an awful .288 OBP). However, he did clout 16 HRs along with 56 RBIs. Defensively, Salty did markedly improve—throwing out a very respectable 31% of runners in 2011. It remains to be seen, however, whether the Red Sox really see him as their long-term backstop—especially having obtained Kelly Shoppach and with prospects like Ryan Lavarnway and Blake Swihart in the pipeline.

Remembering McNamara's Folly Today

Today is Dave Stapleton's 58th birthday. He should be waking up today and slipping on his 1986 World Championship ring. But, because of the stubbornness of one John McNamara, Stapleton was not the late defensive replacement in Game Six of the World Series that year—as he had been in every post-season win. And, so, the rest is Red Sox infamy (although the game was already tied when "it" happened). Stapelton played his entire seven-year career with Boston, carving out a decent .271 average—while never playing in more than 151 games in any year. So, in the spirit of what might have been, a happy 58th to "Stapes" today.

Oswalt Latest Musical Chair For Red Sox

'Round and round Ben goes, where he shops, nobody knows.' After failing to land Hiroki Kuroda and Joel Zumaya this week-end, the Red Sox are now back on the trail of Roy Oswalt.

With all the uncertainties in the #4 and #5 spots in the Sox rotation, a proven starter like Oswalt is an absolute necessity. Considering what the Empire did on Friday—what's the hold-up?

Zumaya Headed To Red Sox Or Padres?

UPDATE: Zumaya Signs With Twins. In the aftermath of the 'Great Yankee Friday The Thirteenth Haul', Ben Cherington might be getting serious. Reports indicate that the Red Sox have renewed their interest in oft-injured fire-baller Joel Zumaya. It looks like the contest is between Boston and friendly trading partner San Diego for the services of the 27-year-old, who missed the entire 2011 season due to elbow surgery. Zumaya can be dominant with a near 100-MPH fastball, having given up 40 fewer hits than innings pitched over his career.

Red Sox To Invite 'Tek To Spring Training

Multiple reports suggest that the Red Sox will extend an invitation to Spring Training to their long-time Captain, Jason Varitek. While his spot on the team is unlikely (short of an injury to another catcher), the invitation is the right thing to do for the organization. Hopefully, he will retire and take a position on the club in some capacity. (Exclusive FenwayNation Photo by Ernie Paicopolos)

Jimmy Fund's New Stars for Young Stars VII

Once again, the Jimmy Fund brought out the stars in January. This time, at New Stars for Young Stars VII, the headliners were Sox great Pedro Martinez (who looks like he could still strike people out) and new manager Bobby Valentine (pictured here with a young fan). Also, an array of young Sox players from prospects like Kolbrin Vitek to veterans like Jarrod Saltalamacchia also turned out to help the greatest charity on Earth. Pedro complemented Saltalamacchia on his play last year, and also shared his sign sequence with a man on second base. All very cool stuff.