Well the Winter Meetings are over and the Red Sox did a lot of talking down there but didn’t come back with Johan Santana as many might have expected. Theo Epstein did say when he left that the channels of communication are still open with the Minnesota Twins.
It does seem as though Eric Gagné *gulp* might be back next season as he may accept the Red Sox offer of arbitration. If this happens, he can’t receive a pay cut of any less that 20% from the $6 million he earned last season. I am guessing the market he thought might be out there, really isn’t. He has stated he does want to be a closer still and if he’s with the Red Sox obviously he won’t be closing out games. There’s some dude named Jonathan Papelbon at the end of the Sox bullpen.
The Red Sox did lose three players in yesterday’s Rule 5 draft as Jose Capellan was taken by the San Francisco Giants and Lincoln Holdzkom was taken by the Philadelphia Phillies in the MLB portion of the draft. Mauricio Mendez was taken by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the Triple-A portion of the Rule 5 draft.
So as “As The Santana Turns” goes on hiatus, let’s take a look at the headlines from the Boston area media on this chilly morning in Red Sox Nation.
Gagne may come back [Boston Herald]
Boston content with roster, but Santana lurking [Pro Jo]
Epstein returns empty-handed [Boston Globe]
No backup plan [Boston Herald]
Boston Red Sox, David Ortiz and Jesus Alou to take part in dedication for restored youth baseball field in Haina, Dominican Republic [redsox.com]
Sox tickets on sale Saturday [Extra Bases]
Sox seeking right lefty [Boston Herald]
