BOSTON (AP) – The Boston Red Sox have filed a proposal with the city to renovate the .406 Club behind home plate at Fenway Park to add more seating and more room for standing patrons.

The proposal would create two levels of club seating where one now exists, and expand seating capacity from 606 to 816 while adding standing room for 200 more people in a more open section.

“Our fans who sit in the .406 Club, as much as they love the conditions on a cold April day, feel while they have the best seats they are divorced from the game by not being part of the collective experience,” said Janet Marie Smith, the team’s vice president for planning and development.

Team executives have not yet determined whether they will keep the .406 Club name, which honors Ted Williams’ batting average in 1941. He was the last major-league player to average more than .400 for the season.

The proposal to overhaul the .406 Club is the latest project to expand the capacity of the oldest and smallest park in the major leagues, since the current ownership group took control in 2002.

The most visible of the changes is the seating above the famous Green Monster left-field wall.

The Red Sox, who won their first World Series in 86 years last fall, recently received approval to add more than 2,000 seats or standing locations on the roofs extending above the left- and right-field stands in time for the 2006 season. Those seats and the overhaul of the .406 Club would expand the park’s capacity from 36,298 to 38,815.

Red Sox ownership has indicated that their goal is to increase park capacity to nearly 40,000, even though they have not indicated any long-term plans to stay in the park, built in 1912 and renovated in 1934.

“The interim steps taken from 2002 to 2006 are not to be construed as part of a “master plan” to renovate or redevelop Fenway Park,” they wrote in their application. But rather are part of an ongoing commitment to improve the fan experience and neighborhood presence while evaluating the long-term options for renovation and Fenway Park’s ultimate future.”

The latest proposed changes would be “compatible with the historic park setting,” according to the plans filed last month.

The proposal has the endorsement of Mayor Thomas M. Menino. “They’re growing and growing and doing the right things on behalf of the ball club,” he said.

Boston 3B Mueller has knee surgery

Boston Red Sox third baseman Bill Mueller has undergone arthroscopic surgery to relieve swelling in his right knee, but might be able to return in time for opening day.

Dr. David Zeman performed the surgery on Monday. Mueller can resume full baseball activities in four weeks, team spokesman Glenn Geffner said.

Zeman also operated on Mueller’s right knee last May and the player missed 37 games, though he complained of soreness through the end of the season. Zeman also operated on Mueller’s left knee in 2002.

Schilling’s bloody sock enshrined in Hall

COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. – The Hall of Fame now has the ultimate red sock to commemorate Boston’s first World Series title in 86 years.

Curt Schilling donated the bloody sock he wore during Game 2 of the World Series to the Hall of Fame on Thursday. The sock is part of a Red Sox exhibition celebrating the team’s four-game sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals.

The exhibit runs through the 2005 baseball season.

Scout suspended during investigation

Hubert Silva, a scout for the Boston Red Sox in Latin America, was suspended by the team while it investigates his role in a game-fixing scandal in Nicaragua.

Silva, who was coaching the Leon team in the Nicaraguan baseball league, was banned by that league last month after allegations that he offered to pay opposing players to throw a game.

Red Sox spokesman Glenn Geffner said Thursday that Silva was suspended pending an investigation.Scout suspended during investigation

Hubert Silva, a scout for the Boston Red Sox in Latin America, was suspended by the team while it investigates his role in a game-fixing scandal in Nicaragua.

Silva, who was coaching the Leon team in the Nicaraguan baseball league, was banned by that league last month after allegations that he offered to pay opposing players to throw a game.

Red Sox spokesman Glenn Geffner said Thursday that Silva was suspended pending an investigation.