40-Man Roster deadline looms

Look for Boston to make a few roster moves on Thursday to protect some players from the 2008 Rule 5 Draft. Eligible players must be added to their teams’ respective 40-man rosters by close-of-business on November 20 in order to remain protected from selection in the draft, which is scheduled to take place on December 11. In the Red Sox organization, the following players will be eligible to be selected if they are not added to Boston’s 40-Man Roster on or before November 20:

Juan Apodaca, Bubba Bell, Jose Capellan, Robert Coello, Jeff Corsalettii, Sean Danielson, Andrew Dobies, Felix Doubront, Zak Farkes, Roberto Feliz, Kyle Fernandes, Felipe Garcia, Javier Garcia, Rafael Gil, Matt Goodson, Joseph Guerra, Mickey Hall, Tommy Hottovy, Jimmy James, Mike James, Jay Johnson, Chris Jones, Hunter Jones, TJ Large, Will Latimer, Blake Maxwell, Jeff Natale, John Otness, Bryan Pritz, Jorge Rodriguez, Luis Segovia, Iggy Suarez, Jose Vaquedano, Beau Vaughan, Mark Wagner, Yahmed Yema, Armando Zerpa

The Red Sox 40-Man is presently at thirty-four, leaving six open roster spots. But don't expect all those spots to get filled - Boston always leaves a lot of breathing room for upcoming off-season acquisitions. However, I still expect that two to four players will be added tommorow. The primary candidates are Hunter Jones (pictured), Mark Wagner, Beau Vaughan, Bubba Bell, and Felix Doubront. With the exception of Doubront, each of these players contributed at AA or above in 2008, and each could vie for playing time with the big league club in the near future. Doubront, the 24th-ranked prospect in the organization (per SoxProspects.com), spent most of the 2008 season at Low-A Greenville, but is eligible for selection as a result of signing his first pro contract with the Red Sox at the age of sixteen in 2004. In 2008, he went 12-8 with a 3.64 ERA, 118 strikeouts, and 24 walks for Greenville, and 1-1 with a 3.86 ERA in three late-season starts for High-A Lancaster. While its less-than-likely that he could stick on a major league club for the entire 2009 season, the Sox may not want to take the chance of losing this promising young lefty. Otheerwise, its unlikely that any of the other players will be protected – but you never know, as it was somewhat of a surprise to see Argenis Diaz added in 2007, which became somewhat of a necessity after his impressive performance in Hawaii Winter Baseball that off-season.

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