REPORT: Lester Likely To Pick By End Of Week

According to a report by CSNNE.com's Sean McAdam, free agent lefty Jon Letser is likely to decide by the end of this week whether to come back to Fenway or seek "greener" pastures in Chicago or San Francisco. Most reports indicate that the Boston offer trails that of Theo Epstein by about a million bucks a year ($138M vs. $130M over six seasons), but no one knows exactly how much Boston is tugging at Lester's heartstrings. McAdam also cites the hideous possibility that The Bronx Embalmers are lurking—as is their wont—to swoop in at the last minute. That would make for a bleak Holiday Season.

REPORT: Reds Have Not Talked Cespedes Deal

According to John Fay of The Cincinnati Enquirer, the Reds have not talked with the Red Sox about a trade for OF Yoenis Cespedes. Fay cites Cincinnati GM Walt Jocketty as the source of the report—which essentially shoots down a lot of the TWITTER chatter over the last week that all but "confirmed" a deal that would bring starting pitching back to the Red Sox. Of course a deal involving Cespedes may still occur—since the Reds need offense and Boston could use one (or more) of Johnny Cueto, Matt Latos, or Mike Leake. Cueto is the pick of the litter—but he would likely require Cespedes plus shortstop prospect Deven Marrero (and maybe even more). Stay tuned.

Should The Red Sox Pounce On Alexi Ogando?

(Associated Press Photo)

The Texas Rangers recently non-tendered the contract of 31-year old right-hander Alexi Ogando. Basically, he was the Texas version of Daniel Bard—jerked around by his organization between starting and relieving to his ultimate detriment. While Bard simply lost confidence in his ability, Ogando mostly got injured. Last year, he pitched just 25 innings and was awful (6.84 ERA). He would have made $2.6 million had Texas signed him—a pittance for a guy with the raw ability of Ogando. The Red Sox should consider claiming the 6'4" Dominican, stick him in a set role, and see if he can regain his early form. Remember, this is a guy who fired a 1.30 ERA out of the 'pen in his rookie year. Then, the very next season, he became an All-Star starter (13-9, 3.51 ERA in 2011). Maybe John Farrell can reclaim Ogando's glory in Carmine Hose. It's worth a look.

MLB Umpire Dale Scott Discloses That He's Gay

Scott Tosses Tito (Associated Press)

MLB umpire Dale Scott—in the big leagues since 1986 and a current crew chief—has disclosed that he is gay. In a perfect world, this announcement would garner no more attention than if Scott were a vegetarian. Unfortunately, in the real world, this is a major development. Scott is universally respected as one of the best umps in the game—and worked the historic 2004 World Series that broke "The Curse". Scott stated that he deliberately decided to make a low-key disclosure without "some banner headline". We look forward to many more years of great umping by Scott.

REPORT: Cubs Have Offered Lester $138M

(Flickr)

According to CBSSports.com's Jon Heyman, the Cubs have offered Jon Lester a six-year, $138 million contract—or $23 million a year. This reportedly tops the Red Sox offer—although The Carmine Hose are willing to go as high as $130 million. Other reports indicate that Theo Epstein—in addition to offering the most cash—is playing the "comfort" card, suggesting that Chicago is the most stress-free landing spot compared with Boston and San Francisco. Not sure how compelling an argument that is.

Haverhill's Carlos Peña Takes MLB Network Job

(Exclusive FenwayNation Photo)

He will always be the pride of Haverhill (MA) High School and Northeastern University. Carlos Peña announced today that he's taken a position with MLB Network as a studio analyst. In all likelihood, this means the 36-year old Peña is hanging up the spikes on a 14-year career. While he never hit for average (.232 lifetime), he was a legitimate power threat at the plate (286 HRs, 818 RBIs). His fluid left-handed swing was a thing of beauty when he connected (1,146 total hits). At Northeastern, Peña led the Huskies to an NCAA Tournament appearance—and batted .324 in his career on Huntington Ave. His only Red Sox highlight was a walk-off HR to right field off Brandon McCarthy on September 4, 2006. We wish Carlos the best of luck in his new career.

Dodgers And Empire In Pursuit Of Andrew Miller

(Keith Allison, Flickr)

UPDATE: Evil Ones close in
It's really hard for us to root for the Denizens Of Chavez Ravine, but when they're competing against The Bronx Embalmers, all bets are off. ESPN.com's Buster Olney reports that both the Dodgers and The Evil Ones are in "serious" pursuit of former Sox reliever Andrew Miller. It's hard to believe that the Red Sox aren't also in the hunt—since Miller could fill the post-Koji closer role, be an eighth-inning stopper or even start down the road. Between the Red Sox and Orioles last year, Miller posted a 2.02 ERA over 62.1 innings—with a stellar 0.802 WHIP.

Red Sox Among Teams Vying For Samardzijia

(Getty Images)

Multiple sources (including from the Olde Towne Team's house organ Boston Globe) suggest that the Red Sox are one of several teams talking to Billy Beane about a trade for starting pitcher Jeff Samardzijia. The soon-to-be 30-year old right-hander went 7-13 with a 2.99 ERA between the Cubs and the A's in 2014. For his 7-year career, the former Notre Dame wide-receiver is 36-48 with a 3.85 ERA. In 16 starts for the A's last year, he had an amazing strikeout-to-walk ratio (8.25:1). Samardzijia will become a free agent in 2016—so the return to Oakland would be somewhat limited.

Jon Lester Is Down To Giants, Cubs And Sox

Lester With A Boston Fan (FenwayNation Photo)

It's pretty much agreed that free-agent lefty Jon Lester has narrowed down his choices to three teams—the San Francisco Giants, the Chicago Cubs and the Boston Red Sox. Still lurking in the shadows, however, is The Evil Empire—generally regarded as the "mystery" team that has yet to pounce. Lester meets with the Giants today—and could conceivably make his decision as early as this week. There is a growing consensus that Lester has made up his mind—some think to return to Boston—and that he is just going through the formalities at this point. Stay tuned!