Buster Olney of ESPN The Magazine is reporting that the Boston Red Sox have finalized a trade to obtain catcher Doug Mirabelli from the San Diego Padres in exchange for Catcher Josh Bard, minor-league Pitcher Cla Meredith and cash.

He also adds that the Yankees tried to obtain Mirabelli to block him from returning to Boston, but the Red Sox won out.

Personally, I love the deal. Many are clamoring over the loss of Cla Meredith, but I just don't see him ever being a quality major league reliever. They're arguing that his small sample size in Boston should be ignored, but I feel that his MLB performance from last year, plus his poor performance in AAA last year and this year goes a long way to prove that he may just never be successful above AA.

Sure, Bard could have eventually learned to catch the knuckler, but with the Yankees in town, it just wasn't worth waiting to find out. Mirabelli has proven he can catch the knuckleball and despite the praise Wakefield heaped upon Bard, he is much more comfortable with Mirabelli. It also can't hurt that while Wakefield has managed to square off against every single left-handed starter in the league, Doug has shown the ability to mash lefties.

It's also important to note that this deal opens up a spot on the 40-man roster. Roger would fit in nicely.

UPDATE: Bernie Wilson of the Associated Press is reporting that the Sox are receiving Doug Mirabelli for Josh Bard, minor-league reliever Cla Meredith and either cash or another player. This leads me to believe that the PTBNL will be rather insignificant.

UPDATE II: ESPN.com has updated their story and reports that the trade is Doug Mirabelli from the San Diego Padres in exchange for catcher Josh Bard, minor-league pitcher Cla Meredith and $100,000. There is no mention of a PTBNL.