Hitch was in his plan  —  Epstein took a wife, left media in dark  —  Theo Epstein is a married man.  —  The Red Sox general manager threw a shutout at the paparazzi, gossip columnists, nosy sportswriters, celebrity bloggers, and any other potential wedding crashers by sneaking off earlier …

Cubs, Prior agree on 1-year deal  —  Right-hander Mark Prior and the Cubs agreed on a one-year deal Wednesday and avoided salary arbitration.  —  Prior will get $3,575,000 and would earn an additional $150,000 each for making 27 and 30 starts.  —  Once considered a Cubs' ace of the future …

GM: Pitching will not be a problem  —  Mets general manager Omar Minaya has always been a glass-is-half-full kind of guy.  It's of little wonder, then that as the team's demanding, boisterous fan base frets over the state of the team's pitching staff heading into the 2007 season, Minaya is offering a top-shelf sales pitch.

Sosa officially signs on, vows to make team  —  ARLINGTON — There are many who question what Sammy Sosa can still contribute to a major league baseball team.  —  Sosa didn't play at all in 2006 after hitting just .221 with 14 homers and 45 RBI in 102 games in an injury-plagued 2005 …

Agent: Bonds won't sign revised contract right now  —  NEW YORK (AP) — Barry Bonds' contract with the San Francisco Giants isn't final just yet.  —  After the commissioner's office rejected Bonds' $15.8 million, one-year deal because it contained a personal-appearance provision …

O's close in on one-year deal with Roberts … While continuing to discuss a long-term contract extension with Brian Roberts, the Orioles are closing in on a one-year deal with the second baseman that, in the short term, will help the two sides avoid salary arbitration.

Congressmen Back Up Mitchell's Steroid Warnings  —  Two weeks after George J. Mitchell warned baseball owners that Congress could become involved in his steroids investigation if he did not receive more cooperation from those within the sport, two congressmen offered their backing for Mitchell's efforts.

Odd man out?  —  Williams gets camp invite but no guaranteed deal  —  Bernie Williams' great Yankees career just might end with a soap opera he didn't bargain for.  —  SI.com has learned that the Yankees have made Williams a standing offer to come to spring training as a non-guaranteed, nonroster invite.

Mets LHP Williams has neck surgery; Sierra agrees to minor league deal  —  NEW YORK (AP) — New York Mets pitcher Dave Williams had surgery Wednesday to repair a herniated disk in his neck and it's unclear how long he could be sidelined.  —  The team also announced that it agreed …

Trying to reach a long-term goal  —  Hall, Brewers eye multi-year deal  —  thaudricourt@journalsentinel.com  —  When Milwaukee Brewers general manager Doug Melvin considers offering a multi-year contract to a player, he goes through a mental checklist of three primary items.

Clemens: `I'm failing at retirement'  —  NEW YORK (AP) — Roger Clemens talked about his plight and laughed.  —  "I'm failing at retirement," he said.  "Let's just face it.  I'm failing miserably at it."  —  The 44-year-old right-hander, unsure whether to retire or return for a 24th major league season …

Living on the edge of a goal  —  The air-supported bubble was bursting with activity on a wintry afternoon in central New Jersey.  Two teams of top high school-age players were playing a game in one corner of the facility.  A pair of Little League-age teams played in another area.

White Chocolate, James Thrash and Sun Ming Ming  —  Having already interviewed 7-foot-9 Maryland Nighthawks signee Sun Ming Ming, his point guard Randy "White Chocolate" Gill and their just-hired-this-week head coach Will Rankin at Tuesday night's Wizards game, I wasn't sure if I'd be disappointed …

Average Is as Average Does  —  Before you dig too deeply, "average" seems like such a simple concept.  But like most things, the way we talk about average production in baseball doesn't always correspond to simple arithmetic.  —  Earlier this week, I posted 2006 positional averages on my blog.

Kerry takes up 'Extra Innings' issue  —  WASHINGTON — A proposal to make Major League Baseball's "Extra Innings" exclusive to DirecTV has drawn the ire of Sen. John Kerry.  —  The Massachusetts Democrat said he plans to raise the matter with the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission at a hearing Thursday.