Sources: Braves trade LaRoche to Bucs for Gonzalez … The Pittsburgh Pirates, filling their need for a left-handed power bat, acquired first baseman Adam LaRoche from the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday for lefty reliever Mike Gonzalez, two sources confirmed to ESPN.com.

Sosa, Rangers agree in principle to deal  —  Dominican slugger is fifth on the all-time homers list with 588  —  ARLINGTON — Sammy Sosa is coming back to the Rangers.  —  The two sides have reached an agreement in principle, and now general manager Jon Daniels and agent Adam Katz are trying to work out the final details.

Mariners' Putz gets $13.1 million deal  —  SEATTLE — J.J. Putz cashed in on his breakout debut season as the Seattle Mariners closer, agreeing Wednesday to a $13.1 million, three-year contract.  —  Putz gets a $1.5 million signing bonus plus base salaries of $2.2 million this season, $3.4 million in 2008 and $5 million in 2009.

Top prospects: Nos. 75-61  —  Humber, Pedroia could make big league impact in '07  —  Few players are as highly valued within an organization as its prospects.  For the fourth consecutive year, I will rank the top 75 prospects in baseball (and honorable mentions), beginning with Nos. 75-61 and counting down the next five weekdays.

Around the Horn: Middle infielders  —  Experience rules at heart of Giants' defense … SAN FRANCISCO — There's a new Giants TV series airing next baseball season: "Two Men and a Kid."  —  The cast?  Shortstop Omar Vizquel, 39, second baseman Ray Durham, 35, and the promising sprite …

Unsigned Bonds Awaits Further Review  —  Six weeks after they agreed to terms on new contracts, Barry Bonds and J. D. Drew remain unsigned.  Bonds hasn't signed with the Giants; Drew hasn't signed with the Red Sox.  That prompts a thought.  If both contracts were to fall through …

President Bush Welcomes World Series Champion St. Louis Cardinals to the White House  —  THE PRESIDENT: Thanks for coming.  It's great to welcome the 2006 World's Series Champs, the mighty St. Louis Cardinals, to the White House.  (Applause.)  —  I appreciate the fact that members of the United States Congress have joined us.

Holliday's salary soars in 2007  —  Outfielder climbs to $4.4 million after $500,000 year  —  Matt Holliday shaved his head this offseason, no longer interested in the fuss to get ready.  —  The Rockies felt similarly about his contract on Tuesday, signing the outfielder …

A site you can't take your eyes off  —  Ferguson Jenkins lost six games by 1-0 scores in 1968.  —  Barry Bonds has earned $172 million in salary over his career.  The attendance at the final game at Ebbets Field was 6,702 (no wonder the Dodgers moved).  January 17 is the birthday of Chili Davis …

Matsuzaka needs to shoot for Nomo's numbers … With all due respect to Greg Maddux, Barry Zito and Jose Mesa, there's really not much competition for the title Hottest Pitcher Acquisition of the Offseason.  Clearly, that great honor goes to Daisuke Matsuzaka, Boston's $103.1 million man.

Player Profile  —  Julio Lugo  —  Julio Lugo is the new shortstop for the Red Sox, after years of rumors that the organization was looking to acquire him.  As a player, Lugo is not exactly a model of consistency.  He's been a plus glove some years, a minus glove in others …

Drew's health still concerns Boston  —  Drew's health concerns Boston  —  The health of outfielder J.D. Drew is always an issue.  —  On Dec. 5, super-agent Scott Boras announced Drew had agreed to a five-year, $70 million deal with Boston.  The Red Sox have yet to announce an agreement.

Another Look at Starting Rotations  —  My pair of articles on starting rotation slots last month found a lot of readers, a lot of criticism, and a lot of misunderstanding.  My analysis (along with Chris Jaffe's, published at about the same time) looked at past data and determined—post facto—how rotations performed.

Marcus Giles detained after fight at Qualcomm  —  New Padres second baseman Marcus Giles was handcuffed, detained and escorted from Qualcomm Stadium during Sunday's Chargers playoff game after getting involved in a fight on the stadium's club level, according to police.