Top News:
Chris De Luca / Chicago Sun Times:
Loaded Sox primed to make major move — NAPLES, Fla. — Seating arrangements at the general managers meetings typically place the White Sox' Ken Williams next to the Cubs' Jim Hendry. Every year, the crosstown rivals scribble ideas and pass notes like a couple of school kids.
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Kat O'Brien / Dallas Star-Telegram:
GM MEETINGS NOTES — Rangers hot in pursuit of Padilla — NAPLES, Fla. - The Rangers are pushing hard to re-sign right-handed pitcher Vicente Padilla, his agent, Paul Kinzer, said Thursday. — Kinzer met three times with the Rangers during the week before leaving the Naples Grande Resort and Club …
Discussion:
MLB Trade Rumors
Ken Davidoff / Newsday:
Yankees might make Proctor a starter — NAPLES, Fla. — With their starting rotation their greatest uncertainty, the Yankees likely will tell Scott Proctor - a pleasant surprise as a reliever in 2006 - to plan for next season as though he will be a starter.
Discussion:
WasWatching.com
Phil Rogers / Chicago Tribune:
Mets, Rangers kick tires on Sox pitchers — NAPLES, Fla. — This and that from the last day of baseball's general managers meeting: — While one Mets executive discounted reports of their interest in Javier Vazquez (a favorite of general manager Omar Minaya from their time together in Montreal) …
Henry Schulman / San Francisco Chronicle:
Giants sizing up costly free agents — Sabean looking at Soriano, Lee — As one measure of how tilted toward players this free-agent market has become, the representative for Ted Lilly, a career 59-58 starter who has interest in San Francisco, said he could get on the phone today and snag …
Discussion:
MLB Trade Rumors
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Rocky Mountain News:
Ringolsby: When playoffs begin, they can get wild — NAPLES, Fla. - The Minnesota Twins have won four division titles in the past five years. They haven't made it to the World Series, however, since 1991. They haven't even gotten out of the first round of the playoffs, other than 2002.
Discussion:
Lone Star Ball
Andrew Baggarly / Mercury News:
Frandsen might bump Durham — The Giants typically don't give opening-day jobs to unproven players, but infielder Kevin Frandsen is forcing the organization to take notice. — Frandsen's performance in the Arizona Fall League has the Giants leaning toward giving him a shot at second base …
Discussion:
MLB Trade Rumors
George King / New York Post:
SHEA IT'S SO — YANKS EYEING HILLENBRAND — Shea Hillenbrand's rickety reputation isn't scaring the Yankees away in their search for a right-handed hitting first baseman. — According to industry sources, the Yankees have Hillenbrand high on their list.
Discussion:
Pinstripe Alley
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Ben Shpigel / New York Times:
Free Agents Want Off-Season to Lead to More Free Spending — Most of the general managers scurried out of town Thursday afternoon, a little ahead of schedule. But during the meetings here they made several free-agent signings that heralded a free-spending winter.
Michael Silverman / Boston Herald:
Manny might be a bargain at $17M — NAPLES, Fla. - The chances of the Red Sox making another offseason blockbuster move - trading Manny Ramirez, in particular - remain slim, but they did increase at the general managers meetings, which concluded yesterday. — GMs are realizing there is a lot …
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Nick Cafardo / Boston Globe:Ramírez still talk of the town
Discussion:
The Feeding the Monster Blog
Joe Strauss / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
Spiezio will return — Scott Spiezio reached the Cardinals last February with a red soul patch, a nonguaranteed contract and a need to remind the sport that his career had not ended in the 2002 World Series. — Thursday, Spiezio reached agreement with the Cardinals on a two-year …
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Chris De Luca / Chicago Sun Times:Sox trade Cotts to Cubs for Aardsma, prospect
Discussion:
Tribe Report
Brian McTaggart / Houston Chronicle:
Astros make offers to two free-agent outfielders — Soriano, Lee are Purpura's top targets; talks for Williams ongoing — NAPLES, FLA. - Promising to be aggressive in their pursuit of free agents in the offseason, the Astros have made contract offers to the top two sluggers on the market …
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Mark Hale / New York Post:
GLAVINE '50-50' — STILL TORN BETWEEN METS AND BRAVES — All-Star left-hander Tom Glavine, who isn't signed yet and who has said he'll pitch for the Mets or Atlanta, told The Post yesterday he is not leaning toward Shea Stadium or Turner Field. — "I would say right now it's a pretty solid 50-50 …
Murray Chass / New York Times:
Slashing Payroll May Be No Bargain — If the Florida Marlins or the Pittsburgh Pirates had made the trades, they would be called salary dumps. So let's call it what it is, even though it was the Yankees who made the trades. It was a salary dump by the Yankees, of all teams. Or was it?
Associated Press:
Bidding starts for Japanese pitcher Igawa's MLB rights — NEW YORK — Kei Igawa became the latest Japanese pitcher put up for bid to major league teams. — The Hanshin Tigers made Igawa available for posting Friday, and big league clubs have until Nov. 27 to submit offers for the right …
Joel Sherman / New York Post:
EXECS: ZITO WILL END UP A MET — NAPLES, Fla. - Eight execu tives were queried as they departed the GM Meetings yesterday on where they thought free agent Barry Zito would end up, and five predicted the Mets. — Omar Minaya would not comment on either that perception or on where his club stands with Zito.
Joe Capozzi / Palm Beach Post:
Team counting on Jacobs at first — NAPLES — Since Wes Helms won't be returning, the Marlins are prepared to give Mike Jacobs another shot at being the team's full-time first baseman in 2007. — Jacobs, who came into 2006 as the starter, wound up splitting time with Helms because of a sore right ankle.
