Manny Delcarmen

By Peter Abraham, Globe Staff Manny Delcarmen, released by Seattle a few days ago, has signed a minor league deal with the Rangers and was assigned to Triple-A Round Rock of the Pacific Coast League.

By Peter Abraham, Globe Staff Manny Delcarmen, released by Seattle a few days ago, has signed a minor league deal with the Rangers and was assigned to Triple-A Round Rock of the Pacific Coast League.

The annual Jason Varitek Celebrity Putt-Putt tournament will be July 21 at Athletic Evolution in Woburn. The charity event raised funds for Journey Forward, a non-profit group that helps people with spinal cord injuries. The event is a 18 hole mini-golf tournament with a celebrity at each hole. Part participants have included Ray Bourque, Jacoby Ellsbury, Jon Lester, Jonathan Papelbon, Coco Crisp, Lenny Clarke, Tim Wakefield, Trot Nixon, David Ortiz, Mark Loretta, Matt Clement, Gabe Kapler, Doug Mirabelli, Kevin Youkilis, Josh Beckett, Mike Timlin, Alex Cora, Manny Delcarmen, Kevin Jarvis, Bob...

The annual Jason Varitek Celebrity Putt-Putt tournament will be July 21 at Athletic Evolution in Woburn. The charity event raised funds for Journey Forward, a non-profit group that helps people with spinal cord injuries. The event is a 18 hole mini-golf tournament with a celebrity at each hole. Part participants have included Ray Bourque, Jacoby Ellsbury, Jon Lester, Jonathan Papelbon, Coco Crisp, Lenny Clarke, Tim Wakefield, Trot Nixon, David Ortiz, Mark Loretta, Matt Clement, Gabe Kapler, Doug Mirabelli, Kevin Youkilis, Josh Beckett, Mike Timlin, Alex Cora, Manny Delcarmen, Kevin Jarvis, Bob...

Pitcher Kris Benson and the New York Mets completed more than three months of negotiations, agreeing yesterday to a $22.5 million, three-year contract. Benson's deal includes a $2.5 million signing bonus and a $7.5 million club option for 2008 with a $500,000 buyout. The deal is subject to Benson completing a physical, which is scheduled for New York tomorrow. New York wouldn't confirm the agreement, only that it asked Benson to have a physical. Contract details were provided by a person with knowledge of the negotiations who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

TORONTO - There might have been a collective sigh of relief from the Red Sox, but there was hardly any time. With their bus to the airport leaving scarcely 40 minutes after Manny Delcarmen got Jose Bautista swinging to end the 11th inning and the game, there seemed to be more of a chance for someone - Jacoby Ellsbury was a good candidate - to get left behind than to celebrate. Still, there was an acknowledgement that, for all the bad that had occurred on this road trip, yesterday's game was good, was important, and might even have been crucial.

LOS ANGELES - It is 6:50 Wednesday night in Los Angeles and I am thinking about Marvin Barnes. You remember Marvin. Providence College. Final Four. Wasted potential. Bob Costas tells a story of his days with Marvin when both worked for the Spirits of St. Louis of the old ABA. There were a lot of short flights on small planes throughout the Midwest and one morning Marvin came at Costas, boarding pass in hand, and noted with some concern that the Spirits were taking off from Louisville at 8 a.m. and arriving at their destination (might have been Indianapolis)

When the Colorado Rockies approached Theo Epstein six weeks ago about a possible deal for Todd Helton, the Red Sox general manager figured he would listen. After all, having Helton would give the Red Sox a drop-dead batting order -- lots of runs -- to go with a drop-dead starting rotation. Helton is Epstein's type of guy, a tough out who wears down pitchers (.430 career on-base percentage) and a tough player. So Epstein listened and listened. He laid down the ground rules to the Rockies: take on two big veteran salaries, pay some of Helton's contract, and we'll also give you...

Despite predictions that Jonathan Papelbon could be the first Red Sox player to go to arbitration during general manager Theo Epstein’s tenure, the closer agreed to a contract yesterday. Papelbon, along with fellow relievers Manny Delcarmen and Ramon Ramirez, are set with one-year deals for 2010. Those agreements leave Jeremy Hermida as the lone arbitration-eligible player on Boston’s roster, and the outfielder and the team exchanged figures yesterday. Papelbon signed for the second straight year just before the deadline to exchange arbitration figures, this time for $9.35 million...

Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek suffered a broken foot Wednesday night and is expected to miss six weeks. That led to the team acquiring Kevin Cash from the Houston Astros yesterday. Varitek left the game against Tampa Bay after eight innings, and a source with knowledge of the situation told the Globe last night that the Sox captain would become the latest player to go on the disabled list. Varitek was in the lineup because regular catcher Victor Martinez went on the DL Tuesday with a broken bone in his left thumb.

BALTIMORE — We have officially reached that “funny time’’ in the season when many pundits have declared the season over for the Red Sox, yet the team just can’t bring itself to hear the fat lady singing yet. Well, after last night’s 5-2 to the Orioles, they might be one step closer. There are signs that general manager Theo Epstein and the Sox have bailed on this season. Epstein shipped Manny Delcarmen out of town yesterday to the Rockies, who feel they still have a chance at the National League wild card.

ARLINGTON, Texas — The decision was a bit of a flip-flop. Before the game, when asked about not using Manny Delcarmen Saturday, Red Sox manager Terry Francona said he didn’t want the reliever to face Michael Young and Josh Hamilton, both of whom have hit Delcarmen in the past. So it was curious when, in the seventh inning of yesterday’s game, Francona summoned Delcarmen to face — you guessed it — Young and Hamilton. Given what transpired, Francona probably should have stuck with his initial instincts.

SEATTLE — As the stadium rocked, as the Mariners celebrated, the reaction was the opposite in the Red Sox dugout, the defeat evident in their actions. Across the diamond, Mariners players stood on the top step of the dugout, their arms over the railing as the Sox batted in the 10th. Just one player stood at the railing in the visitors’ dugout, Dustin Pedroia, flanked by Dave Magadan and a pair of trainers. Everyone else stood back. It only worsened by the 12th. The Sox’ railing was empty, not a single player in view.

If you are looking for a reason to still believe in the battered and bruised Red Sox, last night’s game at Fenway Park would be a good place to start. On the verge of their third straight loss, the Red Sox scored a run in the ninth inning against new Texas Rangers ace Cliff Lee. Given new life by their unexpected rally, the Sox emerged with a 3-2 victory in 11 innings. The hero on both occasions was Kevin Youkilis, who had a double in the ninth inning that tied it and then a sacrifice fly in the 11th.

Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek suffered a broken foot Wednesday night and is expected to miss six weeks. That led to the team acquiring Kevin Cash from the Houston Astros yesterday. Varitek left the game against Tampa Bay after eight innings, and a source with knowledge of the situation told the Globe last night that the Sox captain would become the latest player to go on the disabled list. Varitek was in the lineup because regular catcher Victor Martinez went on the DL Tuesday with a broken bone in his left thumb.

The walk to the mound is slow and uncomfortable for Red Sox manager Terry Francona, the veteran of too many knee surgeries. And it has gotten even more uncomfortable of late, as reliever after reliever has let him down. Save for Daniel Bard and Jonathan Papelbon — yes, even with those blown saves in Colorado — Francona has almost no one he can trust, with Manny Delcarmen struggling significantly of late. Add Delcarmen’s troubles to those of Hideki Okajima and Ramon Ramirez, and there has been little effectiveness from the Boston bullpen recently, especially last night in the...

BALTIMORE - By the time Jonathan Papelbon jogged in from the bullpen, the Red Sox celebratory mood had withered. Where once they were mocking each other for leaving the field with just two outs on the scoreboard, now there was tension on the field and in the dugout. The rain had ruined everything. John Smoltz had been proving himself worthy of a spot in the rotation, a bounce-back from his nerve-filled return to baseball. But 1 hour and 11 minutes of precipitation had forced him out of the game, replaced by a series of arms that could do no right.

ANAHEIM, Calif. - It was a frat party run amok, a band of delirious baseball brothers who raucously celebrated as if they had won the World Series. The Boston Red Sox haven't done that - yet. But they unabashedly partied like it was 2004 yesterday afternoon after thrashing the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, 9-1, to complete a thoroughly humiliating sweep of the best the West had to offer. As the smell of sweat and champagne wafted throughout Boston's clubhouse, the Red Sox let loose, hugging and shouting and dancing to the heavy beat of their victory tunes.

Though the Yankees played Tuesday night’s game under protest, saying that the Red Sox gave no prior indication that Josh Beckett was injured before removing him from the game, those concerns appeared baseless yesterday as the righthander landed on the 15-day disabled list. According to the Sox, Beckett aggravated his back injury — termed a lower back strain — on an off-speed pitch to Alex Rodriguez. Beckett had already been skipped in his previous scheduled start, and Tuesday night he allowed five runs (three earned)

TORONTO — The best pitching performance by a starter at Rogers Centre last night came long before the first pitch was thrown. Daisuke Matsuzaka stepped onto the mound in Toronto for a simulated game, and demonstrated command and feel in preparation for his return to the rotation. That was far more than could be said for either Dana Eveland or Josh Beckett. The Blue Jays starter gave up four runs in the third inning, then the Red Sox starter yielded six in the bottom half. In fact, neither got an out in the fourth before their respective managers decided...