ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) – The Boston Red Sox made another move to bolster their struggling bullpen by signing reliever Todd Jones on Wednesday.

Boston also designated right-hander Hector Almonte for assignment before Wednesday night’s game against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

Jones was released by the Colorado Rockies last week with $1.54 million remaining on his contract. The former All-Star was 1-4 with an 8.24 ERA in 33 appearances this season.

The 35-year-old reliever joined the Colorado Rockies last season and appeared in a team-record 79 games, going 1-4 with a 4.70 ERA and one save. From 1997-2001, he had 144 saves for Detroit and Minnesota.

Jones, pitched for Houston from 1993-96, was an All-Star with Detroit in 2000, when he tied Boston’s Derek Lowe for the AL lead with a career-high 42 saves. In 640 career appearances, all but one coming in relief, the right-hander is 37-41 with a 4.00 ERA and 184 saves.

Red Sox manager Grady Little said he plans to use Jones in middle relief.

On Tuesday, the Red Sox moved Byung-Hyun Kim from the starting rotation to the bullpen in the closer’s role.

Almonte appeared in seven games for Boston, going 0-1 with an 8.22 ERA.

AP-ES-07-02-03 1904EDT