BOSTON -- Newly signed Vicente Padilla will come to camp as a starter and be "in the mix" for the back end of the Red Sox rotation, general manager Ben Cherington said in a conference call with reporters Tuesday.

He also acknowledged that Padilla could wind up in the bullpen.

Padilla was briefly used as a closer by his last big-league team, the Los Angeles Dodgers, recording three saves before requiring neck surgery.

Other topics touched on by Cherington:

* He said he plans to have at least one more conversation with Tim Wakefield, but there appears to be little reason to believe that either Wakefield or catcher Jason Varitek will be back with the club in a playing capacity.

* With the additions of Padilla, Aaron Cook and Carlos Silva as potential candidates to join a rotation projected to have Jon Lester, Josh Beckett, Clay Buchholz and Daniel Bard as its first four starters, Cherington said he is satisfied with the team's pitching depth, though he did not rule out adding another arm.

* Before coming to terms with Jacoby Ellsbury on a one-year, $8.05 million contract, the sides did not discuss a multiyear deal.