The Boston Red Sox-only months after trading away nearly one quarter of a billion dollars in salary money-are in the full swing of rebuilding mode. General manager Ben Cherington, just in time for the holiday season, has put together a noteworthy off-season to date-even if some question marks still exist for the Red Sox.

The Red Sox knew that coming into this month's Winter Meetings, the team had plenty of holes to fill. High profile free agents, general managers and other staff people converge at a Nashville hotel for three days in December. General managers and other major league baseball personnel attend the Winter Meetings to sign top-tier free agents to contracts and, every once in a while, help bring about a blockbuster move.

Cherington and the Red Sox had two goals this off-season: improve both the offense and the starting pitching. The Red Sox offense was only slightly above the league average in runs scored, scoring just 13 more runs than the league average while also posting a team batting average of .260, just five points above the league norm.

In stark contrast, the starting rotation recorded a sub-par season. The Red Sox team 4.70 ERA was the fourth-worst team ERA across baseball, and they gave up an astounding 806 runs, far above the MLB average of 701.

Cherington has made great strides this off-season in improving the offense. He has addressed some of the Red Sox' biggest holes in the offense, signing free agent catcher Mike Napoli and outfielder Shane Victorino during the winter meetings. He had already signed outfielder Jonny Gomes and catcher David Ross, both welcome additions in their respective positions.

The story, however, lies with Napoli and Victorino.
Napoli, who two years ago set a career high with 30 home runs and a .320 batting average, still managed 24 home runs last year, and finished the season with an on-base percentage of .812, earning himself a spot on the American League all-star team. Napoli, who split his time last year between catcher and first base, will be primarily used as a first baseman for the Red Sox. With a .947 fielding percentage at first base, he will help shore up offensive production that was lacking after the departure of first baseman Adrian Gonzalez.

Victorino, praised for his speed and contributions at the top of the lineup, split his time between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Los Angeles Dodgers last year, where he had an on-base percentage of .321. In fact, he is only two years removed from a gold glove in center field. Signing Victorino allows new manager John Farrell flexibility in setting up the dynamics of his outfield. Farrell will pair Victorino with Jacoby Ellsbury, givingthe Red Sox a formidable combination of Victorino, Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia at the top of the lineup.

Cherington did not overlook the pitching, though, in the course of his spending spree this winter. He also signed free agent relief pitcher Koji Uehara to a one-year deal. Uehara allowed only seven runs in the 36 innings he pitched all season, and struck out almost 11 batters per nine innings. Uehara will help solidify a weak Red Sox bullpen that only saved 61 percent of all games last year.

Coming into the off-season, Cherington had a clear goal for the Red Sox, and so far he has converted that goal into reality. While he has yet to address the starting rotation, he has vastly improved the offense in signing Napoli and Victorino and helped shore up the bullpen by adding Uehara. Moving forward, the offense only needs a few minor tweaks. Cherington will spend the rest of the winter, then, with a focus on improving whatever remnants of a starting rotation the Red Sox used last season.