Clearing the Bases

Outfielder Cody Ross reports that he's joining the Red Sox

Angie Muhs Only — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 15:15:55 GMT

Free agent outfielder Cody Ross is ready to join the Boston Red Sox. How do we know? Twitter, of course.

Ross, 31, said he is looking forward to meeting Red Sox fans in one tweet and, in other tweet, he tells Marlins fans to come see him him play when the Red Sox are in south Florida. (Ross played for the Marlins from 2006 to part of the 2010 season).

The Giants picked Ross off waivers in August of 2010 in a wonderful move for San Francisco. Ross batted .294 in the post-season with five home runs and 10 RBI, helping lead the Giants to the World Series title.

Ross struggled last season, hitting .240 with 14 home runs and 52 RBI.

A right-handed batter, Ross can serve a few purposes for Boston. He can play left field until Carl Crawford is fully recovered from wrist surgery. And he can also platoon in right field with left-handed hitting Ryan Sweeney.

Red Sox trade Scutaro; could Iglesias be ready?

Angie Muhs Only — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 00:49:45 GMT

The Boston Red Sox have traded shortstop Marco Scutaro to Colorado for right-handed pitcher Clayton Mortensen, the team announced today.

Mortensen, 26, was 2-4 with a 3.86 ERA in 16 appearances with Colorado last year. He also made 15 starts in Triple-A.

Scutaro, 36, hit .299 for the Red Sox last year. By trading him, are the Red Sox ready to hand the position over to Jose Iglesias, the 22-year-old Cuban shortstop who played in Portland in 2010?

Last year in Triple-A, Iglesias showed off a glove that is ready for the major leagues. But he batted .235 in Pawtucket. He played in 10 major league games, going 2-for-6 at the plate.

Boston also has utility infielders Nick Punto and Mike Aviles, although Aviles is also being considered for platoon duty in the outfield.

Boles, Joppie and Kipper returning to Sea Dogs

Angie Muhs Only — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 22:59:01 GMT

The Boston Red Sox announced that manager Kevin Boles, hitting coach Dave Joppie and pitching coach Bob Kipper are all returning to the Sea Dogs for the 2012 season.

Also, former Portland manager Arnie Beyeler is returning for a second season as skipper of Triple-A Pawtucket.

Here is a list of the Red Sox minor league coaches:

Pawtucket: Arnie Beyeler, mgr; Rich Sauveur, pitching coach; Gerald Perry, hitting coach (Perry was the Oakland A's hitting coach last year; he basically switched spots with Chille Davis who has gone from Pawtucket to Oakland).

Portland: Boles, Joppie and Kipper. The Sea Dogs will have a new trainer in Brandon Henry.

Salem: Billy McMillon, mgr (Greenville's manager the past two years); Rich Gedman, hitting coach; Kevin Walker, pitching coach.

Greenville: Carlos Febles, mgr (Lowell's manager last year); Darren Fenster, hitting coach; Dick Such, pitching coach.

Lowell: Bruce Crabbe, mgr; Nelson Paulino, hitting coach; Paul Abbott, pitching coach.

Gulf Coast: George Lombard, mgr

Lavarnway and World Series trophy coming to L.L. Bean Friday

Angie Muhs Only — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 23:34:25 GMT

The Red Sox, conducting their annual off-season promotional tours, are coming to Maine Friday.

Catcher Ryan Lavarnway and former pitcher Bob Stanley will appear at the L.L. Bean campus in Freeport. The 2004 World Series trophy and Wally the Red Sox mascot will also be there from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Stanley will be there until 12:30 p.m.).

Among the other promotions are a voucher give-away for four tickets to a Red Sox game, and a singing talent competition. involving the National Anthem. The winner will sing at Fenway Park.

The event will be in the Discovery lobby of the main store.

Red Sox add pitcher Aaron Cook to the mix

Angie Muhs Only — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 14:45:19 GMT

The Boston Red Sox have signed Colorado Rockies starter Aaron Cook to a minor league contract, FoxSports.com has reported.

Cook, 32 (33 in February), has only pitched for the Rockies, after being a second round draft pick in 1997. He was the losing pitcher in Game 4 of the 2007 World Series game against Boston.

Cook pitched well from 2007-2009, going 35-22 with a 4.07 ERA. Cook was an All-Star in 2008.

He slipped to 6-8, 5.08 in 2010, and 3-10, 6.03 last year when he was slowed by shoulder problems and a broken finger.

Cook joins a group competing for a spot in the starting rotation, to join Josh Beckett, Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz.

The Red Sox are considering bullpen pitchers Alfredo Aceves and Daniel Bard for the rotation. Felix Doubront and Andrew Miller will also be given a shot.

Before signing Cook, the Red Sox added Carlos Silva on a minor league contract. Silva has pitched for the Phillies, Twins, Mariners and Cubs.

Red Sox sign 12 to minor league contracts, incuding former Sea Dogs infielder Nate Spears

Angie Muhs Only — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 20:45:24 GMT

The Red Sox have added their insurance policy to spring training, in terms of 12 minor league free agents signed for 2012.

The 10 pitchers and two infielders will be invited to the major league camp. Unless they stand out or someone is injured, the 12 will then be assigned to Triple-A, although a few could be released.

The 12 are: pitchers Charlie Haeger, Brandon Duckworth, Will Inman, Doug Mathis, Tony Pena Jr., Carlos Silva, Chorye Spoone, Jesse Carlson, Rich Hill and Justin Thomas, shortstop Pedro Ciriaco and utility player Nate Spears.

Spears, 26, played for the Sea Dogs in 2010 and Pawtucket last year (.248), while also making his major league debut..

Haeger, 28, a knuckleball pitcher, pitched for the Sea Dogs last year (4-1, 3.24 in 50 innings)

Among the others:

Carlson, 31, pitched three years with the Blue Jays (2008-10), missing last season after rotator cuff surgery.

Hill, 31, was with Boston last year when he injured his elbow and had Tommy John surgery in June

Sox do not offer arbitration to Varitek and Wakefield

Angie Muhs Only — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 03:45:21 GMT

The Boston Red Sox announced tonight that they have offered salary arbitration to designated hitter David Ortiz and reliever Dan Wheeler.

The Sox did not offer arbitration to catcher Jason Varitek, knuckleball pitcher Tim Wakefield, lefties Erik Bedard and Trever Miller, and outfielders J.D. Drew and Conor Jackson.

The move means that the Red Sox will receive compensation (with draft picks) if Ortiz or Wheeler sign with another club.

Ortiz and Wheeler have until Dec. 7 to accept arbitration. They are guaranteed to have a contract with the Red Sox in 2012 if they want. They can also decline arbitration and sign with any club (including the Red Sox).

By not offering arbitration to the other players, it does not mean Boston will not sign any of them. But the Red Sox are not obligated to keep any of them for the 2012 season.

Those protected on the 40-man roster, and those not

Angie Muhs Only — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 01:53:58 GMT

The Boston Red Sox added three players last week to its 40-man roster, two of them former Sea Dogs: 3B Will Middlebrooks, OF Che-Hsuan Lin and Class A pitcher Drake Britton.

That does not mean that those three will be reaching the majors next year. In fact, Britton struggled last year and may start 2012 in Class A again.

But by putting them on the 40-man roster, they are protected from the Major League Rule V Draft, which is Dec. 8.

In the draft, teams can pick other team's players who have been with the organization a certain number of years, but are not on the 40-man roster.

This process protects the players who may be stuck in a deep organization with no chance to move up. If they don't get put on the 40-man roster, another team can give them a chance.

There is a catch: Players chosen in the Rule V Draft must stay with the drafting team's major league roster for a full season, or be returned to the original organization.

At one point last year, the Red Sox had several prospects who were going to be eligible for the Rule V Draft. But then Boston traded three Sea Dogs - catcher Tim Federowicz and pitcher Stephen Fife (to the Dodgers) and outfielder Chih-Hsien Chiang (to the Mariners) in the Erik Bedard deal.

All three of those traded players, by the way, are on their new teams' 40-man rosters.

Who did not make the 40-man roster? These three Red Sox prospects could be snatched by another team next month - pitchers Cesar Cabral, Brock Huntzinger and Caleb Clay.

All three were with the Sea Dogs last year. All three have had their struggles, but all have shown major league potential at one time.

Boston's 40- man roster currently has 38 players, although that does not count free agents (David Ortiz, Jason Varitek, Tim Wakefield) who may re-sign with the Red Sox.

Mike Cather, a possible pitching coach, moves on to Padres; meanwhile, manager search continues

Angie Muhs Only — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 10:17:27 GMT

While the Boston Red Sox keep looking for a manager - with reports that Dale Sveum is going to the Cubs, and Pete Mackanin is out of the running - they can also cross off one possibility for pitching coach.

Mike Cather, a Portland Sea Dogs pitching coach from 2007-09, and then a major league advance scout for Boston the past two seasons, has left the Red Sox.

Cather has been named the pitching coordinator (i.e. minor league roving instructor) for the San Diego Padres.

It was thought that Cather might have been a pitching coach candidate in Boston because of his work in Portland with Clay Buchholz and Daniel Bard.

As for the managers search, the Sox candidates are down to Tory Lovullo, Sandy Alomar Jr. and Gene Lamont - unless Ben Cherington and Co. open up the search some more.

Sveum reportedly one of two finalists for Sox job

Angie Muhs Only — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 08:39:59 GMT

Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports is reporting that Dale Sveum will be one of two manager candidates meeting with Red Sox ownership this week.

Sveum, who was the Red Sox third base coach from 2004 to '05, is currently the Milwaukee Brewers hitting coach.

Sveum is also a candidate for the Cubs job.

Besides Sveum, the Red Sox have interviewed four others for the job: Pete Mackanin, Sandy Alomar Jr., Torey Lovullo and Gene Lamont.

Papelbon to Phillies; and the Red Sox closer is ...

Angie Muhs Only — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 23:05:02 GMT

Jonathan Papelbon has reportedly signed with the Philadelphia Phillies for four years and $50.

This is not a huge surprise since Papelbon has talked often about cashing in on free agency.

Papelbon is at his best when he is motivated, which means he will likely be lights out in 2012 and he proves he is worth the money. After that? We'll see.

Meanwhile, the Red Sox need a closer. It was always assumed that Daniel Bard and his 100 m.p.h. fastball would inherit the job. But Bard was one of the problems in the September collapse. His ERA over the last 28 days was 10.45.

Maybe Bobby Jenks comes back in shape.

More likely, the Red Sox will go shopping for a cheaper alternative than Papelbon. Boston could go after the Phillies' Ryan Madson.

Health Bell and Joe Nathan are also on the market.

Dogs doing well in Arizona

Angie Muhs Only — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 18:52:46 GMT

The Scottsdale Scorpions, coached by former Sea Dogs manager Arnie Beyeler, won a 2-0 game Tuesday in the Arizona Fall League, with the help of plenty of Portland Sea Dogs.

Brock Huntzinger started and pitched four scoreless innings (4 H, 0 BB, 3 K). Caleb Clay pitched an inning of relief (1 H, 1 BB). Clay's ERA is now 1.46.

Wil Latimer also relieved, pitching 1 1/3 innings (1 BB).

Alex Hassan went 2-for-3 and is now batting .271. Catcher Dan Butler (.378) went 2-for-4. Ryan Dent went 0-for-4 and is batting .250.

UMaine softball coach to commute from Scarborough

Angie Muhs Only — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 18:41:23 GMT

The University of Maine named former Black Bears All-American Lynn Coutts as its new head softball coach today.

Coutts, 46, who lives in Scarborough with her husband Mike Coutts, the Scarborough High head baseball coach, said she plans to commute to her job, occasionally staying with friends in the Orono area.

Coutts, from Shawville, Quebec, was a standout pitcher for the Black Bears from 1983-87. Since then, she has been involved in softball, including a stint as a UMaine assistant, 1990 to 1994.

Mike and Lynn Coutts are also part of the ownership group of Frozen Ropes Training Center in Portland.

Now there are five

Angie Muhs Only — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 14:04:46 GMT

Sandy Alomar Jr. will get his interview today.

Next up will be Torey Lovullo (Friday) and Gene Lamont (Saturday).

That makes five candidates, so far, for the Red Sox managing job, adding to those already interviewed - Pete Mackanin and Dale Sveum.

Lovullo, 46, managed the Pawtucket Red Sox in 2010 before joining John Farrell's staff in Toronto last year.

Lamont, 64, has managed both the White Sox (1992-95) and Pirates (1997-2000). His latest job was on Jim Leyland's staff in Detroit.

Lamont was the Red Sox third-base coach in 2001, when one of Boston's scouting directors was Ben Cherington.

Too bad Maddux backed out; but certainly understandable

Angie Muhs Only — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 12:20:59 GMT

Have never met Texas Ranger pitching coach Mike Maddux personally. Only heard very good things about him. And, after he explained his reasons for withdrawing from being a candidate for Boston's managing vacancy, I'm even more impressed.

Baseball is an incredibly time-consuming profession that is incredibly hard on families.

Maddux has a wife and two daughters in Texas. They are apparently going to remain in Texas, no matter where dad works. He does not want to keep uprooting them, and he did not think Boston would be a good fit.

"Family matters," Maddux said on the Rangers website. "We talked it over and decided the timing wasn't right for Boston.

"I could give more reasons why an opportunity like this should be taken rather than not, but the reason for withdrawing my name from consideration comes down to a family decision. My wife and two daughters are together in the same state for the first time in three years and words cannot describe my happiness.

"The game of baseball has many sacrifices, but being apart from family is the toughest. I feel there is too much distance between the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and Boston to see my family as much as I'd enjoy."

Maddux, reportedly, will still interview for the vacancy in Chicago (where his brother Greg works in the front office), which is at least in the same time zone.

Meanwhile, the Boston candidates remain the two already interviewed (Pete Mackanin and Dale Sveum), plus Sandy Alomar Jr. (interview scheduled for Wednesday) and others TBA.

Sox decline options on Wheeler & Atchison. Would they want Kelly Shoppach back?

Angie Muhs Only — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 11:01:29 GMT

Might the Boston Red Sox welcome back catcher Kelly Shoppach?

The Tampa Bay Rays declined a $3.2-million option on Shoppach, who played for the Sea Dogs in 2003, and was traded by the Red Sox to Cleveland before the 2006 season.

Shoppach struggles at the plate (.176 average last year), but is one of the best defensive catchers. He threw out 18-of-44 base-stealers (41 percent) last year.

Jarrod Saltalamacchia threw out 31 percent, and Jason Varitek threw out 14 percent.

Meanwhile, the Red Sox decline contract options on relievers Dan Wheeler and Scott Atchison.

Wheeler, 33, had a club option for $3-million for 2012, the same he was played last year. Wheeler was supposed to be a key set-up man, but registered a 4.38 ERA in 47 games.

Wheeler is now a free agent. Boston could still re-sign him at a cheaper price.

Atchison, 35, spent most of last year in Pawtucket. He made 17 appearances with Boston (3.26 ERA).

Atchison's case is different than Wheeler's because he remains under the club's control, and the Red Sox announced that Atchison remains on the team's 40-man roster. He already was cheap, so not sure why his option was declined.

Scutaro insurance until (hopefully) Iglesias is ready

Angie Muhs Only — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 10:27:57 GMT

Shortstop has not exactly been a position of stability for the Boston Red Sox, but Marco Scutaro is preparing to start his third straight season in Fenway in 2012.

The Red Sox picked up Scutaro's option year on his contract for $6-million.

Will Scutaro be with Boston the whole season?

That depends on the production of two players - Scutaro and minor league shortstop Jose Iglesias.

Scutaro, who turned 36 on Sunday, was one of the few solid performers down the stretch for Boston. He finished with a .299 batting average (.781 OPS). He made only 13 errors. And while is arm strength may be a question mark on throws from the hole, he is otherwise dependable.

Iglesias' fielding is his forte. But will his bat catch up? He showed promise in Portland in 2010, batting .285 in 57 games. But a broken hand cut his season short. Rushed to Triple-A Pawtucket last season, Iglesias batted .235.

Iglesias will turn 22 in January.

In other Red Sox news, various media outlets in Boston are reporting that Phillies bench coach Pete Mackanin and Brewers coach Dale Sveum will be the first to be interviewed for the vacant Red Sox managing job.

Sveum, 47, was the Red Sox third base coach from in 2004 and '05. He also managed in the visiting dugout at Hadlock Field, with Altoona from 2001 to '03.

Why wasn't Lackey shelved earlier?

Angie Muhs Only — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 10:22:01 GMT

When Peter Gammons reported in June that John Lackey might need Tommy John surgery, Lackey was quoted to say "he straight made that up."

When Lackey was asked at the time if there was a discussion about having Tommy John surgery, Lackey snapped back: "You guys are brutal. No, there hasn't been."

After a brutal season put in by Lackey, both on and off the field, the truth has finally come out.

This guy should have been shelved months ago and Boston should have been more aggressive in finding some patchwork pitching to save the 2011 season.

Lackey, as it was announced Tuesday, will undergo Tommy John surgery this off-season and will miss 2012.

But the problem was detected in May. Lackey was put on the disabled list back then. He came back and was 7-3 in his first 10 games (although a 4.97 ERA suggested that Lackey received favorable offensive support). He had a 6.75 ERA the rest of the way.

When new general manager Ben Cherington announced that Lackey was going under the knife, he admitted that Lackey's latest MRI was similar to the one taken in May.

If the test results in May showed there was a problem, did the Red Sox really rely on Lackey "gutting it out" for the rest of the season?

Surely, there was a better option.

Maybe Lackey kept telling the Red Sox he felt fine. Why would they believe him?

Well, Lackey can't be traded now. I don't wish an injury on anyone, but not having John Lackey around in 2012 may do the Red Sox (and Lackey) some good..

Epstein leaves; Ortiz talks about going to the Yankees; and Francona is trashed by shameless owners

Angie Muhs Only — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 10:01:45 GMT

Theo Epstein is gone to Chicago and God help the next Boston Red Sox general manager (presumably Ben Cherington).

The new GM will be responsible for building a winner. And if the Red Sox win the championship, make sure the ego-crazed ownership group gets enough credit.

And if Boston loses, especially in the dramatic fashion of this past September, watch out. The owners will take no responsibility. They will say they are responsible but, behind the scenes, blame everyone else, going to the extremes of attempting to ruin another man's character.

No wonder Epstein left. No wonder David Ortiz talks about going to the Yankees (in an ESPN interview).

(By the way, if Ortiz wants to go, don't over-pay to keep him ... and, besides, the Yankees probably don't want him).

Who would want to work for the Red Sox these days and their ownership? Who could trust them? Wednesday's Boston Globe story about the Red Sox collapse is full of allegations against players, and against manager Terry Francona.

Many of those allegations had to come from ownership, especially the ones against Francona. To allege that Francona had problems with painkillers is slanderous. And to say that Francona was distracted because of marital trouble, or because his son is serving in Afghanistan is absurd.

Curt Schilling is right when he calls this character assassination.

I will have more on the subject later (my Sunday column just changed topics, from prospects to the soap opera).

These are sad times at Fenway Park ... not because the Red Sox lost baseball games, but how the men at the top are handling it.

Sox fire Ron Johnson; Arizona League opener

Angie Muhs Only — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 02:20:48 GMT

When the Boston Red Sox hire a new manager, he may likely makes changes in the coaching staff. But the Red Sox did not wait to make changes, firing first base coach (and former Sea Dogs manager) Ron Johnson.

Jonson, 55, has been with the Red Sox for 12 years, including two years as manager of the Sea Dogs, in 2003 and 2004. He moved on to manage Pawtucket and joined the major league staff in 2009.

"Obviously, I'm disappointed," Johnson told Maureen Mullen of csnne.com. "I always considered myself a Red Sox for life ... But that's baseball and things happen, and it's time to start a new chapter."

The Arizona Fall League began Tuesday, but the Red Sox prospects had to wait a day because they were rained out. Wednesday was not worth waiting for.

The Scottsdale Scorpions, which contains the Red Sox players, among other teams, lost to the Surprise Saguaros 10-1. Reliever Jeremy Kertz had an inning to forget. He gave up five hits, including three home runs, in the sixth inning.

Brent Huntzinger pitched two innings (4 H, 1 R, 4 K).

The Scorpions managed only two hits. Alex Hassan played right field was 0-for-4. Infielder Ryan Dent entered the game at second base and was 0-for-1.