As Steve told you earlier this afternoon, Boston  Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia has won his first Gold Glove Award which is presented annually by Rawlings. Kevin Youkilis, who won the Gold Glove last year at first base, did not repeat at first base this season. I really didn’t think about it,” he said of winning the award. “I take pride in my defense, it’s a huge part of my game. In fact, my biggest (priority) is defense. I need to be extremely important to our pitching staff. I put in a ton of time with Luis Alicea and Alex Cora from Day One. It’s only my second year playing second base. I took extra ground balls every single day and it definitely paid off.” “I got a lot faster in the offseason,” he said. “I put in the time, did all the cardio workouts, speed work, and agility. That really paid off where my range got a lot better and my arm strength got better. I’m not the biggest guy in the world but I can make up with effort in the offseason.” As for his thoughts on the Red Sox deciding not renew the contract of Alicea, Pedroia would only say, “He’s helped me out a ton. I definitely wouldn’t be a Gold Glove winner if he wasn’t part of it.” Here's the full list of Gold Glove winners in the American League:

• Catcher - Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins (1st Gold Glove)
• First Base - Carlos Peña, Tampa Bay Rays (1st Gold Glove)
• Second Base - Dustin Pedroia, Boston Red Sox (1st Gold Glove)
• Shortstop - Michael Young, Texas Rangers (1st Gold Glove)
• Third Base - Adrian  Beltre, Seattle Mariners (2nd Gold Glove)
• Outfield - Ichiro Suzuki, Seattle Mariners (8th Gold Glove)
• Outfield - Torii Hunter, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (8th Gold Glove)
• Outfield - Grady Sizemore, Cleveland Indians (2nd Gold Glove)
• Pitcher - Mike Mussina, New York Yankees (7th Gold Glove)

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With GM Theo Epstein out in California for the GM meetings, news related to the Boston Red Sox has picked up over the past few days. The reason being is that the Red Sox have some free agents to discuss with respective agents and some possible trades to talk about. Of course the big free agent the Red Sox have is Jason Varitek. And once again Scott Boras was spitting some hogwash out of his mouth yesterday. “You’re going to have No. 3 starters making $12, $13 million a year. You’re going to have Nos. 1 and 2 starters making anywhere from $18-25 million,” said Boras. “When you talk about the fact that the person who is handling them, who can improve them, who can do all the things necessary to advance them, we really have to look at the fact that if we have a catcher who makes the staff’s ERA a half-run lower when you look at the pitching, the prominence and defense is something you have to look at as value. That’s why I was talking yesterday about Jason… “(There are catchers who produce) literally little or no offense, but they’re playing in the big leagues because they can catch and throw,” Boras continued. “If you have a catcher that puts your team in a position to win and masters your pitching staff, that’s the issue. The issue is far afield from what he hits. If he does hit, if you have a catcher that does that and hits 25 homeruns, he may be a $20 million player. “There just aren’t any catchers who have the ability to have the defensive acumen to lead a pitching staff where your team has a .600 winning percentage and you’re hitting 25 homers and driving in 90, those catchers don’t exist. They just don’t exist.” Can someone please make him shut the heck up? Seriously, a $20 million catcher. For that price he better be hitting .400 with 50 home runs and 150 RBI and throwing every runner out. It will be interesting to see what develops with the Red Sox and Varitek before November 14th when the exclusive negotiation period runs out. At this point the Red Sox might be better served making a trade for one of the Rangers catchers. One thing's for certain, Varitek probably won't end up with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Red Sox have had some discussions about trading Coco Crisp but are finding Julio Lugo to be a hard sell. It's that time of the year where other teams have managerial openings and some names from the Red Sox coaching staff pop up. This time around it is both John Farrell and Brad Mills as they have both mentioned as candidates for the Seattle Mariners opening. Right now the Red Sox have about $110 million already committed to their 2009 roster right now and could do some spending during free agency. Theo Epstein could care less if Manny Ramirez decides to sign with the Yankees. Me on the other hand would be a little bit scared if he did seeing how we face them 18 times a year and we all know what Manny can do. Alex Speier of WEEI.com has some more news and notes from the GM meetings. The Red Sox are interested in Billy Traber to provide some organizational depth. Gary Marbry of WEEI.com has some nuggets on Charlie Zink and David Ross. And last but certainly not least, Jason Bay would love to stay with the Red Sox long-term and hopes to work out a contract extension with them during the offseason. I am all for that one!!! no comments

So while the rest of the United States is talking about Barack Obama becoming our next President, it's time for us here to take a look at the Boston Red Sox news from yesterday. Last week when Jason Varitek filed for a free agency, we ran a poll here at SOX & Dawgs about whether or not the Red Sox should re-sign Varitek. 108 (71%) of the readers said YES the Red Sox should re-sign him.

[polldaddy poll="1060905"]

Now this should probably have been a post of it's own given the fact that Scott Boras has once again made some outrageous comments. During yesterday's GM meetings in California, Boras talked with the media about what he thinks Varitek should command on the open market. Agent Scott Boras told reporters that New York Yankees catcher Jorge Posada’s four-year, $52.4 million deal, which was agreed to last offseason, will serve as a benchmark for any team looking to land Varitek. “It’s probably representative, age-wise,” Boras said, “and it’s also representative of what a player on a winning team (is worth). You’re not going to have many catchers who have the performance levels and a 60 percent winning percentage on a franchise and have won two world championships and caught four no-hitters. The idea of it is that there just aren’t many in the marketplace that can lead a club like Jason Varitek and that’s going to be his value.” Are you f'ing kidding me? Is Boras nuts? The Yankees overpaid Posada and gave him money based on what's he done for the team. There's no way the Red Sox are going to give him that kind of money considering the season he had at the plate. Don't get me wrong because I've said it here before. You cannot question the leadership that Varitek brings to the Red Sox behind the plate. Sure maybe his down year at the plate could be attributed to his divorce from his wife Karen but that's still no excuse. He's definitely not worth a 4 year contract at that price. To me, he's probably worth about $7-10 million a year for 2 years. There had been a report yesterday that the Red Sox and San Diego Padres had been talking about a trade of Coco Crisp for Khalil Greene. Both the Red Sox and Padres shot down that rumor yesterday. I don't think I'm going out on a limb here when I say free agent Jay Payton won't be returning to the Red Sox anytime soon. The Red Sox and Texas Rangers have had very preliminary discussions about a trade for one of the catchers the Rangers have in their stables. While just yesterday the Red Sox may have been frontrunners for the services of Japanese pitcher Junichi Tazawa that might not be the case now as the Atlanta Braves have offered him a MLB contract. Alex Speier of WEEI.com has a full look at some news and notes from the Red Sox concerning Mike Lowell and Julio Lugo among other things. Dustin Pedroia could be among the Gold Glove winners when they are announced tomorrow. Mike Timlin was the final member of the Red Sox to file for free agency and we already know he won't be coming back. Don't forget to take a moment to vote for the 2008 This Year In Baseball Awards over at MLB.com. Don't forget to download your Red Sox toolbar for Firefox or Internet Explorer. no comments

The 2008 Internet Baseball Awards held by Baseball Prospectus are over and the fans have chosen Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia as their MVP. This is the 17th year Baseball Prospectus has held the awards. Pedroia actually had less first place votes than runner-up Joe Mauer of the Minnesota Twins but was on 200 more ballots than Mauer. According to Baseball Prospectus: Pedroia is the second player in IBA voting history to win an MVP the year after winning Rookie of the Year. The first player to do it was also a Red Sox middle infielder, though Nomar Garciaparra played shortstop, not second base, when he accomplished this feat in 1997 and 1998. Three other players have been voted both Internet Rookie of the Year and Internet MVP, though none did it in consecutive years—Derek Jeter, Mike Piazza, and Albert Pujols. Red Sox first baseman Kevin Youkilis finished 6th in the voting. Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Evan Longoria won the IBA AL Rookie of the Year, Cleveland Indians pitcher Cliff Lee won the IBA AL Cy Young and Rays skipper Joe Maddon won the IBA Manager of the Year. The BBWWA yearly awards will start being announced on November 10th.

• AL Rookie of the Year: Nov. 10
• NL Rookie of the Year: Nov. 10
• NL Cy Young Award: Nov. 11
• AL Manager of the Year: Nov. 12
• NL Manager of the Year: Nov. 12
• AL Cy Young Award: Nov. 13
• NL Most Valuable Player: Nov. 17
• AL Most Valuable Player: Nov. 18

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It's Election Day today so make sure you get out and exercise your right to vote. Now on to the Boston Red Sox news. The general managers around the league right now are assembled out in California for the annual GM meetings. It's a time where they take care of some procedural things and then listen to trade offers plus listen to agents talk about their clients and why they deserve more money than your willing to spend. Theo Epstein made his way out to California yesterday after stopping off in Arizona to see Clay Buchholz make his final start in the Arizona Fall League. Theo also revealed that his contract was officially done although we already knew that. It appears that Mike Timlin and Theo talked after the season and whether Timlin retires or not, he will not be back with the Red Sox next season.

“we came to a mutual understanding that Boston probably wouldn’t be the best fit for him going forward, that there would be other places with greater opportunities.” “But what a career that guy had in Boston,” Epstein said. "He was really the staple down there for us–very reliable, very effective, a big part of two World Series teams. We should not let the offseason go by without tipping our cap to him.”

Kevin Youkilis and Jonathan Papelbon could be in for big pay days during the arbitration process. We all know that San Diego Padres Jake Peavy is on the trading block but the Red Sox will not be a destination of choice for him. The only two AL teams he has on his list are the Angels and Yankees. Theo Epstein gives his thoughts on how the Red Sox will be approaching free agents this offseason, including Mark Teixeira. Theo will also be meeting with Scott Boras to talk about Jason Varitek and Alex Cora's futures. Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe says that the Red Sox still appear to be the frontrunner for Junichi Tazawa from Japan. Gary Marbry of WEEI.com has some more Red Sox nuggets for us to enjoy. no comments

Paul Byrd is the latest member of the Boston Red Sox to file for free agency joining 7 other teammates in doing so. Byrd was picked up in a trade by the Red Sox with the Cleveland Indians in August. The move proved beneficial to the Red Sox as he provided some stability to the Red Sox rotation at a time when he was much needed. Byrd went 4-2 with a 4.78 ERA in 8 starts for the Red Sox and finished with a 11-12 record in 30 starts combined. Byrd most likely won't be back with the Red Sox in 2009 as they have a plethora of starting pitching. The only other member of the Red Sox eligible for free agency is Mike Timlin and he'll most likely be retiring. no comments

According to Ken Davidoff of Newsday, the Boston Red Sox will be in hot pursuit of Mark Teixiera should he not re-sign with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

Boston will aggressively pursue Teixeira, two industry sources confirmed. While the Red Sox have a very good first baseman in Kevin Youkilis, they can move Youkilis to third to make room for Teixeira. Incumbent third baseman Mike Lowell is recovering from hip surgery and isn't expected to be ready until mid-March, and as much as the Red Sox like Lowell, they can look to trade him.

You can't question the bat of Teixeira or his glove for that matter. Lowell is getting up in age and obviously wasn't healthy all season. Plus there are a lot of what if's once he gets back. You hope that he comes back healthy and plays like we know he's capable of. But what if he doesn't? What other options would the Red Sox have? Not many during the season. That's why the time is now. If the Red Sox can get Teixeira, they can get younger in the process as well as pick up an impact glove and bat. As much as I like Lowell, to me this is a no-brainer if he (Teixeira) is available.

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On Tuesday afternoon, the Lee County commissioners voted 3-1 to approve a proposal to keep the Boston Red Sox there for at least the next 30 years. At that time, the Red Sox hadn't agreed to the deal. Well this afternoon, just 4 days later, the Red Sox ownership group faxed a copy of a signed agreement keeping the team in Lee County. The deal calls for Lee County to build a smaller version of Fenway Park at an undetermined location that will seat 9,999 and will have room for another 3,000 fans in grassy areas. The complex will also hold 6 practice fields and allow for other commercial development, including restaurants, hotels and shopping. With the agreement in place now, the two sides can now get developers and an architect on board to get the complex underway. The tentative open date will be December 1st, 2011 meaning the first time it would be used for spring training would be in 2012. no comments

With the Boston Red Sox officially bringing back Tim Wakefield this afternoon, it appears the top 4 spots in the pitching rotation for 2009 are set.

1. Josh Beckett
2. Jon Lester
3. Daisuke Matsuzaka
4. Tim Wakefield
5. Clay Buchholz, Michael Bowden, Justin Masterson

The competition for the 5th spot is an interesting one. Personally I think the Red Sox would be better served having Masterson working out of the bullpen where he was outstanding in the second half of the season. Hopefully, the strong Arizona Fall League that Buchholz is having gets him back on track and he pitches to the potential that we've seen out of him. Throwing that no-hitter in the second start of his career may have put some undue pressure on him. And we shouldn't count out Bowden either. While it's quite conceivable the Red Sox will be players in the free agent market for pitchers (C.C. Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, Derek Lowe, Ben Sheets), I just don't see them spending the money on one. The Red Sox interest may be more to drive up the price a little for our neighbors to the south who seem poised to spend the gross national product of a small country to put their team back in the playoffs. It is quite possible that they could pursue Junichi Tazawa from Japan to fill the final spot in their rotation as well. Where I do see the Red Sox spending money is in trying to secure Mark Teixeira if the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim can't secure him during the exclusive 15-day window that ends sometime on November 14th. While there might not be room for him right now, you can sure as heck bet that Theo Epstein will find a way to make it work. no comments

If  you missed the news last night, Jason Varitek, Alex Cora and David Ross have all filed for free agency. It appears that Tim Wakefield will return to the Boston Red Sox for his 15th straight season as they plan to exercise the option on his contract today. The Red Sox/Rays looks to be the new rivalry in town. Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe says we should expect to hear the name Scott Boras for the entire offseason. Rob Bradford of WEEI.com has a look at Mike Lowell's road back from his hip surgery. Clay Buchholz is finding his form again in the Arizona Fall League. Charlie Zink was named the best starting pitcher in all of Triple-A. Please take a moment to vote in our poll in the left sidebar about if you think the Boston Red Sox should re-sign Jason Varitek. no comments