Source: A's agree to 1-year deal with Stewart  —  The Oakland Athletics have reached an agreement with free agent outfielder Shannon Stewart for a one-year deal that could be worth as much as $2.5 million with incentives, pending a physical, ESPN The Magazine's Buster Olney has learned.

A-ROD TROUBLES ARE OPEN BOOK  —  WON'T SAY IF HE'LL OPT OUT OF DEAL  —  What A-Mess.  Call it Alex in Blunderland.  —  Alex Rodriguez's appearance at a signing for his children's book was mishandled by his publicist and bookstore staff members, turning the ballyhooed event into a media circus …

Rotation  —  Manager Charlie Manuel couldn't hide his excitement when Freddy Garcia was acquired from the White Sox in December.  "I'd say we picked us up an ace," he said.  "We've got some good starting pitching."  Regardless of whether Garcia fits the definition of a true ace or not …

Pirates, Castillo avoid arbitration  —  Opening-day payroll projects to $43 million  —  By Dejan Kovacevic, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette  —  The Pirates avoided any arbitration hearings this offseason by agreeing last night to a one-year contract with second baseman Jose Castillo.

100 Names You Need to Know  —  Here's the 11th annual list of Sports Weekly's 100 Names You Need to Know.  These are the next wave of players coming into the majors who, in our view, could make the biggest impact during the 2007 season.  —  These aren't necessarily baseball's 100 best prospects.

Reynolds's Pact Is Included in Amended ESPN Suit  —  Harold Reynolds, a baseball analyst who was accused of sexual harassment and fired by ESPN last year, was scheduled to earn at least $4.875 million in a six-year contract that went into effect last March.  —  Reynolds's contract is part …

A Spring-Training Invitation Remains Unanswered  —  The next road trip on Bernie Williams's schedule is not to Tampa, Fla., for Yankees spring training.  He will not be packing bats and gloves.  Instead, he will bring his guitar to a church in New Milford, Conn., tomorrow, for a benefit concert with Chynna Phillips.

Professional Gains, Personal Addition  —  Brian Schneider has a list of concerns as he prepares to head north from his home in West Palm Beach, Fla., to Viera, where spring training begins next week.  The Washington Nationals catcher wants to have a more consistent offensive season …

Vinny Castilla Retires  —  He had a TERRIFIC FIRST NIGHT.  THE VERY FIRST OFFICIAL MAJOR LEAGUE GAME IN WASHINGTON, DC—In over 34 years.  The Date was April 14, 2005.  RFK Stadium the site.  Arizona Diamonbacks, the opponet.  Vinny Castilla's home run that night off Javier Vasquez began …

Owning up to a problem  —  Sixty years after integration, baseball still has few black managers  —  DALLAS — Here we are in the second week of Black History Month, less than a week removed from the first Super Bowl in which both head coaches were African-Americans, and it would seem …

Will Red Sox get bang for their bucks?  —  The Boston Red Sox delight in branding themselves as a hardscrabble, salt-of-the-earth alternative to that behemoth in the Bronx.  —  Well, they're full of it.  —  Sure, the Sox don't spend as much as the Yankees, but 28 other teams in baseball see them as being cut from a similar cloth.

Raines Is the Next Great Player To Be Shut Out of the Hall  —  It's early yet — we have another year before the results of the 2007 Hall of Fame voting are announced — but it's time to start banging the drum for a player who will be up for election for the first time this year …

Player Profile  —  Adam Dunn  —  Former Baseball Prospectus cover boy Adam Dunn has long been known for his incredible combination of power and patience at the plate, but none of that seemed to matter much in the second half of 2006 when Dunn's performance at the plate helped the Reds miss out on an easily attainable playoff spot.

Alou could make Mets' lineup even more formidable  —  The Mets haven't exactly loaded up on starting pitchers this offseason.  They struck out on Barry Zito and got outbid for the right to negotiate with Daisuke Matsuzaka.  Their biggest signing of a starting pitcher was the re-signing of 40-year-old Tom Glavine.