Theo the Thinker

DANA POINT, Calif. - Theo Epstein may have been one of the last to arrive at baseball's general managers' meetings yesterday, but it wasn't because he was slacking off. Epstein spent the day watching Clay Buchholz in an Arizona Fall League game, then showed up at the St. Regis Hotel, where his No. 1 priority will be the Red Sox' catching situation.

Toward that end, he will meet with agent Scott Boras over the next couple of days to discuss where the team stands in re-signing team captain Jason Varitek. Epstein spoke on a lot of topics upon his arrival, one of which was the multiyear extension he reached with the Sox - a deal that had been reported on for months but without his stamp. "That's done," he said. "It was taken care of a while back." Esptein would not reveal the length or financial terms of the deal but talked about his reasons for staying on with the Sox.

"When you sit back and think about being a general manager, this is exactly the type of organization you'd want to work for," he said. "Great fans, great ownership, and a tremendous foundation of our scouting and player development, which if we don't screw it up will lead to long-term success. "We're all in this game to work with good people and to try and win a World Series."