Kevin Cash was removed from the Red Sox 40-man roster following the season. (AP)

The Red Sox have removed catchers Dusty Brown and Kevin Cash as well as right-handed pitcher Robert Manuel from their 40-man roster. All three will become free agents five days after the World Series.

Cash was acquired from the Astros in the middle of the season, when the Sox had four catchers on their 40-man roster (Victor Martinez, Jason Varitek, Mark Wagner and Brown) on the disabled list. Cash, in his second stint with the Sox, played in 29 games, hitting .133 with a .374 OPS while driving in one. He received raves from the Sox for his clubhouse impact.

Brown appeared in seven games, going 3-for-12 with a pair of runs batted in. The 28-year-old was in his 10th year in the Sox organization.

Manuel, claimed off waivers from the Mariners last offseason, had a 4.26 ERA in 10 appearances for the Red Sox, holding opponents to a .213 average. The 27-year-old’s most notable outing of the season, however, came when he issued a pair of bases-loaded walks against the White Sox on Sept. 5.

Catcher Dusty Brown connected on a three-run home run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift the Pawtucket Red Sox past the Norfolk Tides, 5-4, Thursday night.

Reliever Scott Atchison, just demoted from Boston, gave up all four Tidewater runs, but Brown sent the fans home happy when he homered off Kam Mickolio.

Dusty Brown was a 35^th round draft pick out of Yavapai Junior College (Curt Schilling’s alma mater) in 2000. The Red Sox made Yavapai’s catcher/closer a draft-and-follow, and signed him in 2001, when he made his pro debut in the Rookie Level Gulf Coast League, on the same team on which Manny Delcarmen started his pro career.

Brown showed early promise in his pro career, but in part due to a succession of injuries, his progress was up-and-down, and his movement up the ladder was thus deliberate. He saw one Sox prospect after another zoom past him on the way to the majors, playing with such talents as Delcarmen, Brandon Moss, Hanley Ramirez, Jon Lester, Dustin Pedroia and Jonathan Papelbon as they marched towards the majors.

There were times of frustration. But nine years into his career as a member of the Red Sox, Brown – who had batted just once since making his big-league debut as a defensive replacement this year – ensured achieved a milestone at the major-league level.

In the bottom of the eighth inning of the Red Sox’ 11-6 win over the Indians on Saturday, Brown crushed a changeup from Indians reliever Mike Gosling. The ball sailed over the Wall and crashed in the last row of the Monster Seats for the 27-year-old’s first career hit and first career homer. The Fenway crowd of 37,562 chanted the catcher’s name – Dus-ty, Dus-ty, Dus-ty – until his teammates pushed him out of the dugout to accept a curtain call.

“It’s unbelievable, man,” said Brown. “Not many guys can say that: at Fenway Park, to get a curtain call from the fans, there’s nothing like it. I’ll remember it forever.”

It has been an unforgettable string of days for Brown, who on Wednesday night pitched an inning in Boston’s blowout loss to the Blue Jays. Though Brown said that the homer was hands-down the cooler moment, he has embraced his week of firsts.

“I’ve been hearing people outside the stadium talking about me pitching, and then to have tonight, get in there when I wasn’t really expecting to play, get my first hit and have it be a home run, a curtain call, it’s good stuff,” he said.

It took time for Brown to have his moment. In all likelihood, he will be the last Red Sox player drafted under former G.M. Dan Duquette to make his major-league debut with the Sox.

Brown’s minor-league career demanded a significant degree of patience. On Saturday, his persistence paid off, as he truly entered the company of his once and future teammates.

“So many guys blew right by me, but some guys have different paths to the big leagues than others,” said Brown. “It’s been weird being in the same organization for so long and watching all these other guys develop into what they are now, knowing that at one time I was right there with them. They’d keep going; I had a couple setbacks. Now that we’re finally here, all together, it’s great.”

The last time Dusty Brown saw the inside of the Red Sox clubhouse at Fenway, it looked a lot different than it did on Sunday, when the catcher was called up to the majors for the first time in his career, taking the spot temporarily for Daisuke Matsuzaka.

“It’s the first call-up,” the 27-year-old catcher said. “We’ll see what happens. It’s pretty good. The last time I was in here I think was the year I signed, 2001, and it was much smaller. I was expecting less, I guess. I was pretty impressed.”

Brown’s impact at Triple-A Pawtucket has come behind the plate. He has thrown out 28 percent (16-of-58) of attempted base stealers and leads all International League catchers in putouts (329) and total chances (359). Read the rest of this entry »

FORT MYERS, Fla. — Former Red Sox G.M. Dan Duquette is in Fort Myers today, having made the trip with the U.S. Military All-Stars, a barnstorming group of U.S. military personnel that plays against pro clubs. The All-Stars are comprised of active-duty personnel (including LT Junior Grade Will Sheehan of Boston and Hoptial Medic 3rd Class Jeff Heriot of Franklin) who are on leave from their assignment, so the roster turnover is immense — last year, Duquette said, the team had 150 players.

While his current team hit in the cages, Duquette was greeted by Sox catcher Jason Varitek. Varitek, of course, was acquired in the epic deadline deal in 1997, when he unloaded Heathcliff Slocumb to the Mariners in exchange for Derek Lowe and the Sox catcher, now in his 12th spring training with the Sox. Aside from Varitek, here are the other Duquette alumni who remain with the Red Sox: Read the rest of this entry »

For the most part, the focus on the Red Sox’ catching plans for 2009 has focused on two elements: 1) Whether the team will re-sign Jason Varitek; and 2) Whether the team will trade for a catcher of the future.

Even the Red Sox have given the impression that they would prefer to have one of those scenarios come to fruition. The team has given some mention of the possibility of entering spring training with free-agent signee Josh Bard and minor leaguers George Kottaras and Dusty Brown. But team officials—including G.M. Theo Epstein and CEO/President Larry Lucchino—have suggested that there is “unfinished business” with the catching personnel.

Nonetheless, it is an interesting time for the minor-league catchers in the Sox organization, particularly for Kottaras. The 25-year-old, who was acquired from the Padres in exchange for David Wells in 2006, is coming off of an intriguing second full season in the Sox organization.

With Triple-A Pawtucket last year, he hit just .243 but demonstrated excellent patience (64 walks, .348 OBP) and impressive power (22 homers, .456 slugging), earning a September call-up to the majors so he could work with both bullpen/catching coach Gary Tuck and Jason Varitek. Kottaras later enjoyed a strong performance during a brief stint in the Dominican Winter League, hitting .308/.419/.462/.881.

Defensively, Kottaras feels that he has made notable progress behind the plate, both in his ability to work with pitchers and call games, as well as in his ability to block pitches. He suggests that there is more to do, noting a desire to improve his receive and frame pitches for umpires.

“I’ve come a long way throughout my career. Last year, I had a great season. But you can always learn,” Kottaras said earlier this month while in Boston for a Jimmy Fund event. “I learned a lot when I was up in the big leagues in September, spending everyday with Gary Tuck and watching ‘Tek do his thing. I’m just trying to continue moving forward in my progression.”

Now, he is out of minor-league options, and so he faces a spring training in which the Red Sox’ catching situation is not only unsettled, but also in which the Sox must either keep him in the majors or make him available to other clubs through the waiver process. One way or another, it seems likely that Kottaras is at a career crossroads this spring.

“I try not to (think about it) at all. Nothing’s going to be handed to me. I’ve just got to come in and work hard. I’ve got to fight for a job, basically. I never take things lightly,” said Kottaras. “The indication is come to spring training ready to go, and try to win a job. That’s pretty much it. It’s exciting.”

Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein appeared at the Home for Little Wanderers in Jamaica Plain to promote the annual slate of Hot Stove, Cool Music events (baseball round-table, live music, etc.) that will take place this weekend and raise money for nine local charities. (More on that shortly, but for those who cannot wait for the updated blog, visit the Hot Stove, Cool Music website.)

Though Epstein’s appearance was meant to promote the weekend events and the work of the Home for Little Wanderers, he did take a moment to address his team’s catching situation in vague terms. Though the Sox have signed Josh Bard to a one-year deal (with a team option for 2010), clearly, the identity of the team’s contributors behind the plate remains a work in progress.

“We have Josh on board now,” Epstein said. “We’ll see what happens. We’ll see how it evolves.”

Conceivably, if the team does not stockpile more catchers, it could consider a platoon involving Bard and George Kottaras or Dusty Brown. If the team pursued that track, Kottaras and Brown would likely compete for the chance to be in a time-share with Bard during spring training.

The switch-hitting Bard has been much more productive as a right-handed hitter against left-handers (.288/.341/.443) than hitting left-handed (.256/.330/.376). That would suggest a more natural platoon with the left-handed Kottaras (who hit .243/.348/.456 with 22 homers for Triple-A Pawtucket in 2008 before a year-ending call-up), who also enjoys an advantage of sorts over Brown (.290/.377/.471 with the PawSox) in that he is now out of team options.

Of course, it is likely premature to contemplate a platoon of a player who spent 2008 in the minors with Bard. Jason Varitek remains unsigned, and the Sox can continue to explore options with him and other free-agent catchers at the same time that they continue to evaluate the trade market (Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Taylor Teagarden of the Rangers, Miguel Montero of the Diamondbacks, etc.).