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"&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Longtime Boston Red Sox captain Jason Varitek will announce his retirement on Thursday, according to Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The news comes as no surprise -- Varitek turns 40 in April, and he's coming off of one of the least productive seasons of his 15-year career. The catcher hit just .221 with 11 home runs last season, playing in only 68 games. The team offered Varitek a minor league contract and an invitation to big-league camp, but the catcher declined.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Varitek is expected to stay with the organization in some capacity, Abraham reports.\nThe Red Sox are well stocked with backup plans at the catcher position -- Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Kelly Shoppach and Ryan Lavarnway are all expected to see time behind the plate in Boston this season.&lt;/p&gt;"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.si.com/si-wire/2012/02/28/report-red-sox-captain-jason-varitek-will-retire-thursday>