The Red Sox will bring reliever Hideki Okajima back with a one-year contract, according to a report by WEEI in Boston. Okajima, 35, who has been with the Red Sox since 2007, was non-tendered by the team in Nov., went 4-4 with a 4.50 ERA in 56 games last season.

There is still a ton of interest in free-agent reliever Brian Fuentes, according to Sports Illustrated's Jon Heyman. Heyman wrote on his Twitter page that the Red Sox, Blue Jays, Rays, Rockies, Mariners, Twins, Pirates, Phillies, Brewers, Yankees and Mets all have at least some interest in the left-hander. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports suggested last week that Fuentes is seeking a deal similar to the three-year, $15 million contract Scott Downs received.

The Red Sox are still interested in signing reliever Brian Fuentes, according to Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated. "i didnt have answer on wbz-fm a few mins ago. but yes, #redsox are still looking at fuentes. pen w/ him, bard, jenks & pap would be superb," Heyman wrote on his Twitter page.

Bobby Jenks isn't happy with the way his tenure with the White Sox ended. Jenks, Chicago's closer since 2005, was non-tendered on Dec. 2 and went on to sign a two-year, $12 million deal with the Red Sox. He expressed disappointment during a conversation with MLB.com. "It was my first hope, and it hurt," Jenks said of remaining with the White Sox. "During my first conversation with my wife after the season, she looked me in the eyes and said that she would go anywhere with me. I said that I wanted to go back to Chicago. "I don't want to sit here and say I'm a 15-year veteran, but I felt I was a significant part of this organization and this team. With the moves that happened and the way things rolled out, it made more sense by their actions to look elsewhere." The confusion for Jenks began when Chicago signed Adam Dunn. According to Jenks, the White Sox informed his group how Dunn instead would be wearing No. 45 -- Jenks' number. That decision, Jenks claims, pretty much spoke volumes about the White Sox desire to keep him. "Once they signed Adam Dunn and gave him my number, I knew it was official," Jenks said. "With that move right there, even though they talked to me after [Paul] Konerko and Dunn signed, it was almost like an afterthought, I felt. They never made it seem like they wanted to bring me back."

The Red Sox have added Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford this winter, but experts still see right-hander Josh Beckett as the key to their success in 2011. "Can they win the AL East without Beckett?" said an American League executive. "Sure they can. They won 89 games without the real Beckett last season. But if you want this staff to really click, Beckett needs to be Beckett." Beckett went 6-6 with a 5.78 ERA in 21 starts last season. "Without Beckett at the top of his game, it makes it tough for the Red Sox," said the executive, "even with all they've done with that offense with Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez, to be considered the team that can win it all. "If Beckett is Beckett, they stand out more than any team in the game right now."

In talks prior to acquiring Adrian Gonzalez in a trade with the Padres, the Red Sox were told by the first baseman that he wouldn't change his contract demands if Albert Pujols sets the market in the interim. That was a key part of the talks for the Red Sox, who were concerned that Pujols would sign a contract worth more than $30 million annually and increase Gonzalez's price. "I made a comment to [Red Sox general manager] Theo [Epstein], 'Make the trade happen by itself, and I promise you during the season I'll negotiate,' " Gonzalez told ESPNBoston.com. "I'm not going to come here and be like, 'OK, we'll see you at free agency and see if you outbid the other teams.' We'll negotiate during the season. We're going to be fair. We won't be looking for record-breaking deals. We just want market value. "We gave them our word that we were going to negotiate during the season in good faith. We're not going to go in there and ask for Albert Pujols' contract, something along those lines."

Jonathan Papelbon is still the closer of the Red Sox. Boston general manager Theo Epstein confirmed as much in an interview with MLB.com on Tuesday. "We kept Pap's agents up to speed the whole time as a courtesy, both earlier in the offseason and the last couple of weeks as we filled out our bullpen," said Epstein. "Then I left Pap a voicemail after we signed [Bobby] Jenks to let him know that we still see him as our closer and we've got two power setup guys to get him the ball in the ninth inning."

Bobby Jenks is very excited to join the bullpen of the Red Sox. Boston and Jenks finalized a two-year, $12 million deal on Tuesday. "I'm excited to get the opportunity to come here," Jenks said. "Obviously with the season they're putting together this year, it's very exciting. I've always wanted to play in Boston."

The Red Sox have signed reliever Bobby Jenks, which the Boston Globe writes could open up the possibility of the team fielding offers for closer Jonathan Papelbon. However, Boston doesn't appear to have made a decision on the right-hander. "Sources indicated the Red Sox plan to keep Papelbon as their closer, with Jenks joining Daniel Bard in setup roles. That trio should be formidable, and help the Sox recover from having one of the worst bullpens in the American League last season," writes the Globe.

The Red Sox have come to terms on a contract with reliever Dan Wheeler, according to team sources. Wheeler averaged 68 appearances per season for the Rays over the last three years. He was 2-4 with a 3.35 ERA for the Rays in 2010.