Dustin Brown

The 27-year-old Brown spent his third season with Triple-A Pawtucket in 2009, losing some of the power he showed in 2008 while keeping a respectable batting average. Playing for an organization that didn't know where its next catcher was coming from prior to the trade-deadline acquisition of Victor Martinez, Brown was never considered a legitimate candidate. He's got good defensive skills and works well with pitchers. If he continues to improve with the bat, he could eventually land as a backup at the major league level. That probably won't happen in 2010 as Boston still has Jason Varitek under contract.