Red Sox claim RP Manuel from Mariners

26-year old Robert Manuel was claimed by Boston off waivers today. Manuel tossed 65.2 innings for Seattle's Triple-A club this past season, amassing a 2.88 ERA with a 49/16 K/BB ratio. He doesn't possess great stuff, but is good depth for Triple-A. Boston has to restock Pawtucket given the departures of Fernando Cabrera, Marcus McBeth and other flotsam. The 40-man roster is now at 32, so the team had puh-lenty of space to bring him aboard. You could see Manuel tossing some junk innings in a Red Sox uniform at some point this coming season.

The Current State of Baseball Economics

Yesterday, ESPN's Rob Neyer published an article quoting Commisioner Bud Selig's thoughts concerning the current state of baseball economics. Says Selig,

Some teams lost money in 2009, baseball commissioner Bud Selig said Thursday after the final owners meeting of the year. "There was no question about that," Selig said. "I don't think the concerns have been ameliorated at all. I think the concerns are still there because all these people have their own economists." Selig said final figures for this year are still being calculated and everyone is living in the most difficult economic times since the Great Depression. He declined to identify the teams. "I think of all the heartache that's in the world," Selig said. "We live in this environment. We don't live in a bubble. And so, I think the clubs in some areas have been hit a lot harder than others."

This seems to happen every year, where multiple MLB owners allege that their team has “lost money” and therefore needs any number of amenities, including, but not limited to: extra money towards the building of a new stadium, special tax relief, more money from the state, etc, etc, etc.