Did the Rocket win St Louis the World Series?  —  If you read the THT mailbag last Wednesday you probably noticed Anthony Weekley's question asking whether the Astros would have made the postseason had Clemens returned at the start of the season rather than waiting until June 22.

Inside Job (Part 2)  —  I goofed!  In last week's look at the short inside-the-park home runs of 2006, I noted the "standard distance" of home runs rather than the "true distance."  According to Hit Tracker, the standard distance is corrected for wind, temperature, and altitude.

Marlins make moves, plan others  —  Checking out what's percolating in center field, the bullpen and elsewhere with Marlins spring training five weeks away:  —  • General manager Larry Beinfest believes free agent pickup Alex Sanchez has a realistic chance to win the starting spot in center field …

Negotiations heat up to bring back Weaver  —  The Cardinals could still use another starting pitcher.  —  Jeff Weaver could use a team.  —  What appeared to be a long-shot re-signing as recently as two weeks ago now appears to be the defending World Series champions' final offseason priority.

Nuttings' stake grew bid by bid  —  Gradual buyout of partners led to control of Pirates  —  Pirates CEO Kevin McClatchy and chairman of the board Bob Nutting discuss the "change of control" within the Pirates.  —  The Pirates' ownership is not the most open of operations.

Padres give two Greenes some green  —  The Padres' future got Greener yesterday.  —  Not only did the club avoid arbitration by reaching a one-season contract agreement with shortstop Khalil Greene, the Padres signed catcher Todd Greene to a minor league contract.

Jays reward Overbay with four-year, $24M extension  —  TORONTO — First baseman Lyle Overbay and the Toronto Blue Jays agreed to a $24 million, four-year contract, a team official said Sunday.  —  Overbay hit .312 with 22 home runs, a team-high 46 doubles and 92 RBIs with Toronto last season …

New-look Cubs ready to make rounds  —  Fans to get an earful about all the changes  —  The Cubs come out of hibernation this week for the annual off-season spinfest known as the Cubs Convention, hoping to assure a shell-shocked fan base that last year's 96-loss disaster won't be repeated.

Notes: Encarnacion discusses injury  —  Outfielder to start rehab on surgically repaired wrist next week  —  ST. LOUIS — Juan Encarnacion cleared up a couple of mysteries on Sunday afternoon.  Encarnacion, chatting with reporters at the annual Cardinals Care Winter Warm-Up …

Mets nearing $1.25M deal with free-agent pitcher Sosa  —  NEW YORK — The New York Mets and pitcher Jorge Sosa were close to agreement Saturday on a one-year contract worth about $1.25 million.  —  Sosa, a 29-year-old right-hander, was a combined 3-11 with a 5.42 ERA last season for Atlanta and St. Louis, making $2.2 million.