For the diehard fan, by the diehard fanhttp://www.soxspacenews.com/blog New Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington’s first bit of business in his new role with the team was an important one – hiring a new manager. But it was a managerial process like no other. After receiving public backing from ownership to carry out the interview process,Cherington met with a number of low-key candidates, many of which were seeking their first managerial job. Then came the announcement of a second interview for former Sox third base coach Dale Sveum, whose only tenure as...http://www.soxspacenews.com/article/952 You should probably be over your Jonathan Papelbon blues by now, but if not, this trade should do the trick. After weeks of discussions, the Red Sox have finally acquired their replacement for Papelbon in the closer´s role by sending a package that includes outfielder Josh Reddick to the Oakland A´s in exchange for right-hander, Andrew Bailey. While many had been campaigning for the Red Sox to sign former Phillies closer Ryan Madson to a deal that likely would have cost Boston upwards of...http://www.soxspacenews.com/article/951 In a market full of free agent closers, I´m going to try to make sense of attempting to trade for closer Andrew Bailey. In scenario number one, a trade for Bailey will help keep the Red Sox´ payroll under the luxury tax threshold, whereas signing someone like Ryan Madson to a four-year deal north of $40 million would bump the Red Sox´ payroll up significantly more than Bailey would. This winter, Bailey will be eligible for arbitration for the first time, and won´t become a free agent until ...http://www.soxspacenews.com/article/948 Ah, the old inter-profession switch-a-roo; a beautiful thing when perfectly executed. Last week, the Red Sox announced that former ESPN Sunday Night Baseball analyst Bobby Valentine would be the man to replace Terry Francona as the new manager of the Boston Red Sox. Last night, ESPN announced that former Red Sox manager Terry Francona would be the man to replace Bobby Valentine as the new ESPN Sunday Night Baseball analyst. As a GM, I wouldn´t have made this move. But now that it has hap...http://www.soxspacenews.com/article/949 After weeks and months of speculation over whether or not David Ortiz would return to the Boston Red Sox, we finally have our answer. Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes is reporting that Ortiz has opted to accept the Red Sox´ offer of salary arbitration. Earlier today, we learned that the Red Sox had made an offer of $18 million over two years to retain Ortiz´s services, but apparently the designated hitter chose the bigger annual dollar figure over another year of job security. In accept...http://www.soxspacenews.com/article/950 25 years later, and the man still can´t catch a break. As you already know, Bobby Valentine is the new manager of the Boston Red Sox. What you may not already know, Valentine and former Red Sox first baseman Bill Buckner have had a friendship that dates back four decades. There had been rumors swirling that Valentine would bring Buckner on as part of his coaching staff here in Boston, although the 1986 scapegoat hasn´t coached at the major league level since Nomar Garciaparra´s Rookie of...http://www.soxspacenews.com/article/947 It would make absolutely no sense for the Red Sox to admit this, but I think you guys know where I´m going with this. According to a tweet from SI.com´s Jon Heyman, Bobby Valentine´s new deal to be the Red Sox´ manager will be for two years when he finally dots the I´s and crosses the T´s. When Red Sox GM Ben Cherington and team president Larry Lucchino unveil their new manager tonight at 5:30pm, one thing that I can promise you that you won´t hear is that Valentine was their first choic...http://www.soxspacenews.com/article/946 I´m a big fan of NBC´s HardballTalk baseball blog. Often, when a major baseball event occurs, they will do a segment called, "Here´s what they´re saying", where they grab quotes from writers, players etc. on the big event. My Twitter feed was filled with Bobby Valentine columns this morning, so I thought I´d put them all in one place for you guys today. Obviously I read more than I regurgitate here on SoxSpace, but today I figured that it would be interesting to take a slice from both nati...http://www.soxspacenews.com/article/941 Of course they did that. Of course the Red Sox told their players that they wouldn´t hire someone like Bobby Valentine. Why would the Red Sox have a positive news day without some drama and inner turmoil mixed in? It just wouldn´t be right. According to Alex Speier over at WEEI.com who cites "multiple industry sources", "Red Sox officials told at least one player that the team had no plans to hire ´someone like Bobby Valentine.´ " Now Buster Olney´s quote makes more sense. If you missed ...http://www.soxspacenews.com/article/942 While we all know Pedro Martinez as the fierce competitor that he was on the mound for seven seasons with the Red Sox, it´s important to know that his heart is greater than his Hall of Fame credentials. Back in 1998, Martinez founded the Pedro Martinez and Brothers Foundation. To read more about the foundation and what they have accomplished since their inception, click here. Martinez will host a toy drive at HomeGoods in Bedford, Massachusetts to support pediatric cancer patients at Dan...http://www.soxspacenews.com/article/943