Tavarez has inside track on Sox's closer role

Sidelined since Feb. 25 because of a strained left oblique injury, veteran Mike Timlin will start the regular season on the disabled list. The most likely scenario is that the Red Sox will place Timlin on the disabled list for the first six games and retroactive the date so that he'll be ready for the home opener. Timlin, along with Joel Pineiro, Brendan Donnelly had been in competition to win the closer's job with Julian Tavarez, who appears to have the latest inside track on the spot.
Source: MLB.com