The Red Sox have acquired 26-year old lefty swinging infielder Tug Hulett from the Royals for either a player to be named later or cash.  Hulett played in 15 games for the Royals last season and he was 2 for 18 (.111 avg, .269 OPS) with 4 runs scored and 1 RBI.  He also played in 99 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 109 for 374 (.291 avg, .857 OPS) with 62 runs scored, 11 homers, 53 RBIs and 9 stolen bases.  Hulett has now played in 45 games in his major league career and he is 13 for 67 (.194 avg, .524 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 1 homer and 3 RBIs.  This wasn’t too bad of a move for the Red Sox who will likely stash Hulett in AAA-ball in 2010.

The Red Sox have claimed 26-year old righty reliever Robert Manuel off waivers from the Seattle Mariners. In his first major league action last year with the Reds, Manuel pitched in 3 games (0 starts) in which he was 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. Manuel also pitched in 51 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball last year and he was 4-5 with 14 saves, a 2.88 ERA and a 1.01 WHIP. This was a good move for the Red Sox as Manuel has a nice little upside.

UPDATE: The Red Sox have designated Manuel for assignment to make room on the roster for Gabby Hernandez.

The Red Sox have released 28-year old righty reliever Fernando Cabrera. Cabrera pitched in 6 games (0 starts) for the Red Sox last season and he was 0-0 with a 8.44 ERA and a 2.06 WHIP. He also worked in 43 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball last year and he was 0-3 with 22 saves, a 1.71 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. The Red Sox needed Cabrera’s roster spot to set the 40-man roster. Some team will give him a chance next season as he has a good arm but the Red Sox think they can do better.

The Red Sox have released 26-year old lefty swinging catcher George Kottaras. Kottaras played in 45 games for the Red Sox last season and he was 22 for 93 (.237 avg., .695 OPS) with 15 runs scored, 1 homer and 10 RBIs. Kottaras’ fate was sealed when Jason Varitek exercised his player option for the 2010 season. The Red Sox would have been content saving the money that Varitek would make in 2010 ($3 million bucks) and going with Kottaras again as the back up catcher. Kottaras played 2 years for the Red Sox appearing in 48 games in which he was 23 for 98 (.235 avg, .692 OPS) with 16 runs scored, 1 homer and 10 RBIs.

UPDATE: Kottaras was quickly claimed on waivers by the Brewers.

28-year old lefty swinging outfielder Joey Gathright has refused an outright minor league assignment and now he is a free agent. Gathright played in 17 games for the Red Sox this season and he was 5 for 16 (.313 avg, .666 OPS) with 7 runs scored and 1 RBI. Gathright has now played in 445 games in his major league career and he is 309 for 1,175 (.263 avg, .630 OPS) with 177 runs scored, 1 homer, 96 RBIs and 80 stolen bases. Gathright will likely hook on with another team because of his speed but the Red Sox won’t miss him.