Red Sox announce their front-office changes

The Red Sox announced three changes to their baseball operations department on Wednesday. Eddie Romero, who served as coordinator of Latin American operations since 2006, has been promoted to assistant director of Latin American operations; Gus Quattlebaum was promoted to assistant director of amateur scouting, after working as a Major League scout since 2006; and Steve Peck, who joined the Red Sox in 2009 as a professional scout, after 13 years on the coaching and scouting staff of the Mariners, is now a Major League scout.

The Red Sox also announced the signings of right-hander Joe Nelson and catcher Gustavo Molina to Minor League deals with Spring Training invites. Both players are currently on the Triple-A Pawtucket roster. Now they are going to put on the red sox jerseys.

Nationals add reliever Walker

According to two baseball sources, right-hander Tyler Walker agreed to terms on a one-year contract with the Nationals. The club also signed outfielder Chris Duncan and left-hander Chuck James to Minor League deals with an invitation to Spring Training.Walker is expected to be part of the new relief corps which includes Brian Bruney, Matt Capps and Eddie Guardado. He is a seven-year veteran who has played with the Mets, Giants and Rays.

Duncan is coming off one of his poorest seasons in the big leagues, hitting .227 with five home runs and 32 RBIs all in the cardinals jersey. On July 22, St. Louis traded Duncan to the Red Sox for infielder Julio Lugo, but Duncan never saw Major League action with Boston.

As for James, he missed the entire 2009 season due to left shoulder surgery. He was signed by the Nationals on the recommendation of assistant general manager Roy Clark, who was impressed by James when they were with the Braves. James' best season was in 2006.

Red Sox invite Molina to spring camp

A source confirmed on Friday that the Red Sox have signed catcher Gustavo Molina to a Minor League deal with an invitation to Spring Training. Molina spent the entire 2009 season playing with the Nationals' Triple-A affiliate, the Syracuse Chiefs, and he batted .209 with two homers and 24 RBIs in 72 games. The right-handed hitter saw action in 19 Major League games from 2007to 2008, batting .118 with the White Sox, Orioles and Mets.

Originally signed as an undrafted free agent by the White Sox in 2000, Molina is a career .235 hitter and .342 slugging percentage in the Minor Leagues. Molina also has experience at third and first base. Hope he can play well in the red sox jersey.

Padres CEO has nothing to say about Gonzalez

Moorad, in an interview on the Padres' flagship radio station said that he doesn't believe general manager Jed Hoyer has spoken with Boston Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein since the Winter Meetings concluded in Indianapolis last week. He also didn't think Hoyer and Epstein discussed Gonzalez.

Gonzalez has been the subject of trade speculation since the end of the regular season. Hoyer was an assistant general manager to Epstein in Boston before joining the Padres in October in trade discussions for the two-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove Award winner. Moorad said "If it's something that would dramatically improve our ballclub, we'd be silly not to listen. Does that mean other teams don't ask about him? Of course not. We're going to listen." "Jed has money to spend, not a lot, but money to spend," Moorad said. Well can Gonzalez put on the padres jersey successfully?

Paul Lessard is hired as Reds head trainer

The Reds announced last week during Redsfest that the club has hired Paul Lessard to be their new head athletic trainer.
Lessard, a Major League trainer for 12 seasons, was with the Red Sox the past four seasons. From 1998-2005 he was with the Diamondbacks. Now he is replacing former head trainer Mark Mann, who decided to resign last month.

Before working in Major Leaguel, Lessard was a trainer for Boston University and Holy Cross. He also spent two years as an assistant trainer for the NFL's Atlanta Falcons from 1985-86. He graduated from Northeastern University in 1986.

High school pitcher Kikuchi will remain in Japan

Japanese high school pitcher Yusei Kikuchi announced at a press conference on Sunday in Japan that he will choose his country's pro leagues for now. He is expected to be the No. 1 pick in Japan's Oct. 29 amateur draft. "I don't think I have what it takes to compete at the world level yet." Said Kikuchi.

If a player joins a Japanese team, he must play nine seasons before becoming a free agent. Some players, such as Red Sox right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka (in red sox jersey) , can leave earlier through a posting system that allows Major League Baseball teams to bid for negotiating rights.

Wakefield will undergo surgery this week

Red Sox( red sox jerseys )general manager Theo Epstein.Veteran Tim Wakefield, whose troublesome back prevented him from building on an All-Star first half, will undergo surgery later this week. He would like to come back in 2010 for what would be his 16th season in Boston.

The surgery is expected to require a minimal amount of recovery time, meaning that Wakefield should be ready for the start of Spring Training. "Wake is someone that is in our plans and we hope he makes starts for us next year and is a member of the rotation," said Epstein. "We haven't sat down and finalized anything. Obviously, we want to see how the surgery goes and then both sides will sit down and talk."

Lenny Dykstra's championship ring was sold

The Associated Press reported that Lenny Dykstra's championship ring from the 1986 World Series was sold at an auction for more than $56,000. Dykstra, who is said to have serious financial troubles, had 11 items at the auction.

A collector from Queens, where Dykstra and the rest of his Mets wrapped up the Series win over the Red Sox, won the ring with a bid of $56,762.50. Dykstra is a three-time All-Star player, whose last season was with the Phillies in 1996, said he owed more than $31 million and had only about $50,000 possession.