According to several media reports,
the Red Sox have abandoned their pursuit of Reds closer Francisco Cordero—mostly due to his age (36) and declining strike-out rate. Reportedly, Boston will now re-focus their efforts (we use that phrase loosely based on this off-season) on Ryan Madson (free agency) and Andrew Bailey (trade). If Bob McClure is really signing on as pitching coach, perhaps
he can jump start the process of getting someone to work the 9th inning.