Mauer, Twins avoid arbitration with four-year deal  —  MINNEAPOLIS — AL batting champ Joe Mauer and the Minnesota Twins agreed Sunday to a four-year contract worth $33 million, avoiding salary arbitration and ensuring one of the team's young stars will be in uniform for the long term.

Trouble brewing for Dice: Pitchman's beer ad catches flak  —  Daisuke Matsuzaka has yet to throw his first pitch for the Red Sox [team stats], but his beer-chugging sales pitch intended only for Japanese TV audiences is raising eyebrows and some concern half a world away.  —  Daisuke ad:

Deep Breath as Pitchers Rethink Routines  —  A dozen of the best pitching prospects in baseball lay side by side in the dark, their eyes closed, their mouths shut, their minds open.  —  They pulled their sweatshirt hoods over their faces.  They let their feet dangle over their yoga mats.

Wallace Matthews  —  3's a crowd....pleaser  —  New York is a baseball town.  Always has been, always will be.  —  How much do we love baseball around here?  —  Last year, more than 7.5 million people went to baseball games in New York.  This year, the figure will be closer to 8 million.

Farm-fresh approach to winning  —  The Rangers have committed to the notion that they must build through their farm system.  —  To that end, they aim to make improvements in drafting and developing players, make smart signings in Latin America and hopefully acquire other good, young prospects through trades.

Spring Training Preview: Tracy seeks winning carryover  —  Says Pirates 'very capable of picking up where we left off in 2006'  —  By Dejan Kovacevic, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette  —  Jim Tracy will open his second season with the Pirates, his seventh as a manager in Major League Baseball …

Retooled D-Backs up stakes  —  After 2 rebuilding seasons, club hopes for NL West title  —  Jeff Moorad was talking with friends recently when an old conversation was revisited.  A year ago this time, Moorad was selling them on the wonders of Orlando Hudson, promising they would love …

For Nats' Home, a Rapid Ascent  —  Corner-Free Clubhouse Among Unusual Details in Ballpark on Anacostia River  —  During the 2005 baseball season, long before construction began on a stadium for the Washington Nationals, architect Marshall Purnell and others involved in the project toured SBC Park …

For Sox, decisions rest mostly with pitchers  —  And now for a preview of Red Sox spring training, Non-Daisuke Division:  —  If your idea of spring training is all-out competition for jobs, then this camp is not for you.  Outside of a spot or two in the bullpen, manager Terry Francona's roster …

Loewen thinks big … Not long after receiving the best news of his young professional career, Adam Loewen sat alone on a bus.  —  Leaving his Bowie Baysox uniform behind, the 22-year-old pitcher boarded a bus in Altoona, Pa., to catch a flight in Pittsburgh the next morning.

Anderson's not on hot seat  —  Beyond the usual suspects: Five players to keep an eye on  —  The blond locks were longer than usual last month.  Looking like he should be in search of the nearest beach, outfielder Brian Anderson instead was at SoxFest, answering questions about his future.

Williams to turn down minor league deal with Yanks  —  NEW MILFORD, Conn. (AP) — Bernie Williams plans to decline the New York Yankees' offer to attend spring training on a minor league contract, the outfielder told reporters Friday night before playing guitar at a benefit concert.

Arbitration Goes LA's Way  —  Dodgers relief pitcher Joe Beimel prematurely began his offseason by missing the playoffs because he had cut his hand at a New York bar, and he finished it trying in vain to nearly triple his 2006 salary.  —  A panel of three arbitrators ruled Saturday …