Ben and Jed... and Theo?

Gammons: Jed Hoyer and Ben Cherington to be Co-GMs
Wilbur: Curtain call for Epstein

Report: Gammons and Wally Out of
Sox GM Hunt as Surprise Pair Emerges

'Restructuring' Decision, Details at 3:30 p.m. Today

Red Sox Apprentice: Former GM candidate Peter Gammons reports today that the Red Sox will name in-house staffers Ben Cherington and Jed Hoyer co-GMs, with a possible return of Theo Epstein also on the horizon.

With that announcement, the two Apprentice finalists, Gammons himself, the former Boston Globe scribe now nationally known major league baseball writer, analyst, and commentator, and Wally the Green Monster, longtime Red Sox baseball operations foot soldier, were rumored to have been have told by Lucchino that they are both out of the running for the GM position.

Both Gammons and Wally were still agressively campaigning in the past week to win the job outright. Gammons' man-on-the-street efforts paid off with the fans, as he won the meaningless popular vote survey. Wally worked his in-house liasons and media contacts to get his plans out in a public forum.

A source familiar with the late night GM debate said the team was still deadlocked in a midnight vote between Gammons and Wally, so out of the blue, they decided to give the job to a pair of in-house employees vowing to "figure it out as we go along." Lucchino, not exactly a favorite of Gammons and vice versa, voted for Wally along with Tom Werner, Ben Cherington, Bill James, Dave Jauss, and Zach Scott. Red Sox principal owner John Henry voted for Gammons along with Bill Lajoie, Jed Hoyer, Craig Shipley, Brian O'Halloran, and Jeremy Kapstein.

More details to follow as they become available...

Survey Said: Sox Fans Go for Gammons

NY Times: Epstein May Return to Sox

"How the new structure will work is unclear. Lucchino would not confirm Epstein's role, but he said in a telephone interview: 'The door has been left ajar for some time. That's obvious to everyone. So we'll see what happens over time.' Was he saying that the door had been left ajar for Epstein to return? 'We haven't replaced him yet and he hasn't taken a position yet, so by definition it's been left ajar,' Lucchino said." -- 12.12.05, Murray Chass, The New York Times