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The Red Sox traded pitcher Jon Lester and outfielder Jonny Gomes to the Oakland Athletics on Thursday in exchange for power-hitting outfielder Yoenis Cespedes. The deal reflects Bostons stated desire to contend in 2015 while also signifying the Red Soxs unwillingness to potentially watch their ace depart for merely draft pick compensation.

The addition of Cespedes represents an attempt to fill Bostons most glaring need. The Red Sox lack a middle-of-the-order presence, as well as organizational outfield depth, and Cespedes has the potential to immediately become a valuable right-handed complement to David Ortiz.

The 28-year-old totaled 49 home runs between 2012 and 2013 his first two seasons in Oakland after defecting from Cuba and has slugged 17 homers in 101 games this season despite calling the extremely pitcher-friendly O.co Coliseum his home. Its reasonable to expect Cespedes power numbers he owns a career .788 OPS in 365 games to increase now that hell be playing at Fenway Park on a regular basis.

Playing left field at Fenway doesnt require a cannon, but Cespedes has one, anyway. Hes tied with Red Sox center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. for the most outfield assists in Major League Baseball this season with 12. Baserunners will want to think twice about taking an extra bag against Bostons outfield, especially if Shane Victorino remains healthy and complements the duo in right field.

Another interesting aspect of Thursdays blockbuster is that the Red Sox received a competitive balance draft pick the second pick in Comp Round B in addition to Cespedes. While the pick is slightly later than the one the Red Sox would have received this offseason as compensation if they kept Lester for the remainder of 2014 and the lefty signed elsewhere in free agency, the draft picks inclusion at least guarantees that Boston stands to net a long-term asset. In other words, the Red Sox really werent forced to decide internally whether theyd be better off obtaining Cespedes or the draft pick this offseason if Lester walked because they secured both pieces Thursday.

This is of particular importance because Cespedes, who signed a four-year, $36 million contract with Oakland before the 2012 season, is set to become a free agent after the 2015 season. He also has a clause in his contract that, in short, prevents him from being subjected to a qualifying offer in turn eliminating the possibility of the Red Sox (or whoever his current club is at the time) receiving draft pick compensation if he leaves via free agency. While its likely the Red Sox will explore a possible extension with Cespedes, Boston can rest assured knowing that it solidified a draft pick regardless of whatever happens.

But lets not get too far ahead of ourselves. Surely, this move was made with 2015 in mind and under the presumption that there was a chance perhaps a very good one that Lester would not re-sign with Boston. The Red Sox wanted to acquire value while they could, and they evidently prioritized acquiring major league talent that can aid the teams win-now philosophy.

The ideal scenario for the Red Sox would be for Lester to re-sign with Boston in free agency this offseason something the pitcher hasnt ruled out and the club moving forward with its ace and some added offensive firepower. The chances of that happening, however, are unknown.

Of course, the Cespedes acquisition doesnt come without risk. Cespedes is a free-swinger not exactly conducive with Bostons offensive philosophy with a career .318 on-base percentage. And while theres reason to believe the right-handed-hitting slugger will pepper the Green Monster, its worth noting that his numbers actually are better at home (.278/.344/.494, 36 home runs, 184 games) than on the road (.248/.293/.447, 30 home runs, 181 games), suggesting that one shouldnt automatically assume leaving a pitchers paradise in Oakland will morph Cespedes into The Sultan of Swat.

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Red Sox Swing For Fences In Trading Jon Lester For As Yoenis Cespedes

By Elizabeth O'Brien, MarketWatch

Imagine youre remodeling your home. The plumber is installing the pipes, the electrician is running the wiring, and the roofer is laying the shingles. Problem is, theyre each doing their job in isolation, never talking to one another even though theyre working on the same project.

That would never fly on a building site, but thats the state of health care for most patients today. Despite working on the same projectyouphysicians and other medical professionals across different offices don't often communicate about shared patients. You almost dont have a general contractor to look over the whole thing, said Jennie Chin Hansen, CEO of the American Geriatrics Society.

By middle age, many of us have at least one chronic health issue. In 2009-2010, 21% of adults ages 45 to 64 had two or more chronic conditions, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. Among those 65 and over, that number rose to 45%. (Examples of chronic conditions common among older adults include high blood pressure, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and arthritis. Mental health conditions, such as depression and schizophrenia, are also considered chronic conditions.)

A federal appeals court struck down the subsidies available to some consumers who buy health coverage on insurance exchanges. Heres what the decision could mean for the Affordable Care Act.

And patients often see a specialist for each chronic condition, in addition to a primary care doctor. They go to someone for their kidney stones, someone for their diabetes, and someone for their cardiac condition, said Dr. Steven R. Counsell, president-elect of the American Geriatrics Society and Mary Elizabeth Mitchell Professor and director of geriatrics at Indiana University School of Medicine.

Heres the issue: A lack of coordination among all these medical professionals can result in a host of problems, including adverse drug interactions, conflicting instructions and duplicated tests, all of which can be hard on the health and the wallet.

The medical community recognizes the problem, and there are early, hopeful signs of change. The Affordable Care Act provided for the creation of accountable care organizations, also known as ACOs, which are groups of medical providers that have a financial incentive to provide more efficient care. Nearly 11% of Medicare beneficiaries are currently served by one, and the concept has also gained traction outside of the government program.

Medicare, which covers some 52 million adults ages 65 and over and those with certain disabilities, plans to introduce a chronic-care management code next year, allowing doctors to bill the government for certain non-face-to-face time they spend helping patients manage chronic conditions. Private insurers have also begun to reimburse medical providers for care coordination, whether thats paying the salary of a staff care coordinator or a paying a per-member monthly fee as part of a patient centered medical home, another model for improved primary care. Insurers are realizing that these upfront payments can save bigger costs down the line.

Historically, insurers have reimbursed medical providers per procedure, a payment structure that critics say lends itself to overtreatment rather than coordinated, efficient care. Doctors typically didnt receive any payment for calling another doctor on a patients behalf. And even if they did, many couldnt realistically do that for every patient, since a full-time primary care doctor in a single-specialty practice has a median count of 2,223 patients, according to MGMA-ACMPE, the largest membership association for medical practice managers in the U.S.

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Elizabeth O'Brien's Retire Well: Train your doctors to treat you right

L.I. Paving and Masonry Driveway Paving
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L.I. Paving and Masonry Driveway Paving - Video

Tommy Stevens

Sun staff photos can be ordered by visiting our SmugMug site.

LOWELL -- A Billerica man is accused of fraud by accepting a partial payment to repave a Dracut couple's driveway/parking lot, tearing up the concrete, leaving and not returning.

In Lowell District Court on Tuesday, Tommy Stevens, 36, no clear address, pleaded not guilty to charges of entering into a commercial transaction under false pretenses and malicious/wanton destruction of property.

He was released on personal recognizance and ordered to stay away from the alleged victim. Stevens' next court date is Sept. 26 for a pretrial conference.

Dracut police write in court documents that an Arlington Avenue couple contacted them April 30.

The victims allege that on Sept. 24, they were approached by Stevens, formerly of Dracut, who provided a card identifying himself as the owner of U.S.A. Roofing & Paving at 105 Lowell St., Lowell.

Police state that Lowell does not have a Lowell Street.

Stevens looked at the couple's driveway/parking lot and quoted a price of $800 to pave it, with $400 to be paid up front and the remaining $400 after the job was completed, police allege.

Stevens was given a check for $400 and in return he provided a slip that stated "ReNew Paring Black Concreat (sic) high two inches she Deposit to me 400.00." It was signed "Tommy."

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Dracut police: Suspect took money in paving scam

LOWELL -- A Billerica man is accused of fraud by accepting a partial payment to repave a Dracut couple's driveway/parking lot, tearing up the concrete, leaving and not returning.

In Lowell District Court on Tuesday, Tommy M. Stevens, 36, who has no clear address, pleaded not guilty to charges of entering into a commercial transaction under false pretenses and malicious/wanton destruction of property

He was released on personal recognizance and ordered to stay away from the alleged victim. Stevens' next court date is Sept. 26 for a pretrial conference.

Dracut police write in court documents that an Arlington Avenue couple contacted them on April 30. The victims allege that on Sept. 24 they were approached by Stevens, formerly of Dracut, who provided a card identifying himself as the owner of U.S.A. Roofing & Paving at 105 Lowell St., Lowell. Police state that Lowell does not have a Lowell Street.

Stevens looked at the couple's driveway/parking lot and quoted a price of $800 to pave it, with $400 paid up front and the remaining $400 after the job was completed, police allege. Stevens was given a check for $400 and in return he provided a slip that stated "ReNew Paring Black Concreat (sic) high two inches she Deposit to me 400.00." It was signed "Tommy."

The couple said Stevens broke up and removed pieces of concrete from the lot, then state he was leaving to get supplies and would return to complete the job, police allege. Stevens never returned, according to court documents.

The $400 check given to Stevens was cashed that day.

Since Sept. 24, the couple have called Stevens 15 to 20 times, speaking to him several times on the phone and allegedly receiving assurances from Stevens he would refund the money. The last time the couple spoke to Stevens was three months ago. The money has never been refunded.

Dracut Police Officer Jon Gosselin reported that he had been told three months earlier that Stevens may have been involved in a driveway-paving scam, but there was no indication of misdeeds.

Gosselin said he made multiple attempts to reach Stevens at several phone numbers and different addresses, but to no avail. The Sun tried to reach Stevens via a phone number in court documents, no one answered and there was no voicemail available to leave a message.

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Billerica man accused of driveway scam

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TRADING Standards officers are warning people across North Somerset to be on their guard following reports of rogue traders operating across the district.

Residents in Clevedon, Nailsea and Long Ashton have been targeted by rogue traders over the past weeks selling paving, driveway cleaning, roof treatments and tree services door to door.

Doorstep trading has been linked to distraction burglary.

North Somerset Council Trading Standards spokesman, Chris Gwenlan, said: "Sadly, vulnerable and elderly residents are often targeted by less scrupulous traders to gain large cash payments.

"Sometimes they even escort the consumer to a cashpoint machine to obtain the money. They rarely tell the consumers that they have a right to cancel a contract made in their home and they use pressure to obtain the job and often escalate the cost of the planned work.

"People should always obtain several quotes before agreeing to home maintenance work.

"It's also a good idea to use local businesses that have been recommended by friends or family.

"Homeowners should never rush into a contract but should take time to think and shop around for the best deal.

"If the price or product being offered seems too good to be true it usually means just that - it is too good to be true."

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H_Pickstock published Trading Standards chiefs warn of rogue traders

SAN ANTONIO - An upscale subdivision on Lake Travis, complete with a water park, announced a luxury home tour that will feature seven new, state-of-the-art houses next year.

The Reserve at Lake Travis, which has its own 260,000-gallon water park for residents, opened in 2009 and hired seven custom-home builders to construct the million-dollar homes that will be on display next summer, which they announced last week.

The Luxury Home Tour is hosted by San Antonio and Austin-based Luxury Home Magazine.

"We were looking for a neighborhood in the Austin area where we could go above and beyond," said Tomas Martinez, publisher of the Luxury Home Magazine. "We didn't want to just pick a development to sell houses, but something with world-class amenities and lifestyle options ... We were blown away with The Reserve."

Some of the builders, includingAdam Wilson Custom Homes, also construct homes in San Antonio, Martinez said, adding that the homes will range in price from $1.3-1.5 million and 3,000-5,000 square feet.

The slideshow above features renderings of these planned homes, photos of the subdivision's homes and water park.

The Reserve subdivision, which was developed by Hal Jones and Red McCombs, features three miles of shoreline, a 160-boat marina, an equestrian center and 75 home sites.

The water park features a 40-person hot tub, a swim-up bar, a lazy river, two pools and a 40-foot tall slide.

kparker@express-news.net

Twitter: @KoltenParker

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Austin subdivision prepares for Texas luxury home tour

Eric Wheeler strummed the notes of The Cure's The Drowning Man as his 15 students lay in a corpse pose on their mats, looking up at the ceiling and paintings of sports heroes and grapefruit.

"I've only been playing for a year and half," said Wheeler, 44, of Tampa. "I always like to play during Shavasana because I've got a captive audience."

The melancholic tune was one of many used to help move bodies during Wheeler's weekly Dark Wave Yoga class at Tempus Projects, a Seminole Heights non-profit gallery dedicated to hosting local artists.

Bands on the continuous playlist can include Joy Division, Morrissey and Nine inch Nails. Wheeler mixes a new playlist every week.

"He's an excellent mixer because he knows the music and just knows how to create that energy for the class," said Erin Wheeler, Eric's wife and co-founder of their company, Lucky Cat Yoga.

Both Wheelers teach yoga in a variety of settings all over the Tampa Bay area from studios to libraries. It was one such class at a library last year that gave birth to Dark Wave Yoga. Students approached Erin and showed her a clip of dark wave yoga from another city.

'They asked me if we could have a yoga class with this sort of music," Erin recalled. "I said sure, because we love this type of music. We're formerly sullen and formerly moody."

Thinking that such an atmospheric class would need a different setting, the Wheelers reached out to friend, Tracy Midulla Reller, 40, of Tempus Projects, to see if it would be possible to hold a weekly class there. Lucky Cat had hosted a yoga class in the space before, but weekly was something different altogether.

"I thought it was a great idea because I'm sort of a shut-in," Reller said. "I joked that I'm too self-centered to go to yoga, so yoga had to come with me."

After Christmas, Dark Wave Yoga began and a core group of music fans and Seminole Heights residents began populating the group.

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A darker path tolightness

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