The Red Sox have signed 29 year old righty Lee Gronkiewicz to a minor league deal. Gronkiewicz only pitched in one game last season for the Blue Jays and is was his major league debut. He worked 4 innings and he allowed 2 hits, 1 earned run, walked 2 batters and whiffed 2. He will likely start the season in the minors but he may be needed by the Red Sox at some point in 2008.

The Red Sox have re-signed Mike Lowell to a 3-year, $37.5 million dollar contract. This might look like a bargain when the big names start signing in free agency. All Mike Lowell did in 2007 was win the MVP of the World Series in a career year. Lowell played in 154 games last season for the Red Sox and he was 191 for 589 (.324 avg, .879 OPS) with 79 runs scored, 21 homers and 120 RBIs. For his career now, Lowell has played in 1,296 games and he is 1,323 for 4,731 (.280 avg, .812 OPS) with 636 runs scored, 184 homers and 778 RBIs. Look for Lowell to have three good seasons for the Red Sox and make the contract he signed look like a bargain.

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The Red Sox have inked Curt Schilling to a 1 year, $8 million dollar contract with incentives that could make the contract worth up to $13 million. With free agency looking weak for starting pitchers this was a good signing for the Red Sox. Schilling started 24 games for the Red Sox this season and he was 9-8 with a 3.87 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP. Schilling has done good work for the Red Sox in his career and they hope he still has something left in the gas tank. Schilling has now pitched in 119 games for the Red Sox (98 starts) and he has a 53-29 record with 9 saves, a 3.95 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP.

The Red Sox have acquired 25-year old switch-hitting outfielder Sean Danielson to complete the Joel Pineiro trade earlier in the season. Danielson played in 103 games in A+AA ball last year and he was 104 for 351 (.296 avg) with 64 runs scored, 4 homers, 36 RBIs and 19 stolen bases. Don’t hold your breath about Danielson as he’s a long shot to ever play in the big leagues.

The Red Sox have picked up 2008 options on Tim Wakefield ($4 million) and Julian Tavarez ($3.85 million). Wakefield is a bargain at $4 million bucks as he started 31 games last season and he was 17-12 with a 4.76 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. Wakefield has now pitched in 511 games (370 starts) in his major league career and he’s 168-146 with 22 saves, a 4.33 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. Julian Tavarez probably isn’t worth the kind of cash that the Red Sox will be paying him in 2008. He wasn’t good enough for the Red Sox to have on the roster for any of their post season series. Tavarez pitched in 34 games (23 starts) for the Red Sox last season and he was 7-11 with a 5.15 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. He has now pitched in 734 games (108 starts) in his career and he has a record of 84-70 with 22 saves, a 4.42 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP.