Sox to Curt: Fat chance — Team sticks with wait-and-see tactic  —  FORT MYERS - When you really stop and think about it, Curt Schilling [stats] never had a chance.  Not when he is 40 years old and just one in a strong class of potential free agent pitchers.

Q&A with Tom Hicks  —  SURPRISE, Ariz. - Rangers owner Tom Hicks encountered a strong headwind as he flew into Arizona on Friday and because he was 30 minutes late, he missed the first team meeting conducted by new manager Ron Washington.  —  "I got a little tardy," Hicks said.

Notes: Graffanino turns the page  —  After offseason of discontent, infielder focuses on baseball  —  PHOENIX — Tony Graffanino's long, strange offseason came to a happy end on Friday, when he became the final Brewers regular to report for Spring Training.

Legal troubles remain an issue for White Sox's Uribe  —  TUCSON, Ariz. — Conflicting reports emerged Friday about the status of Chicago White Sox shortstop Juan Uribe's legal troubles.  —  Uribe is alleged to have shot a farmer in his native Dominican Republic during the offseason.

Notes: Comebacker fells Walker  —  Lefty suffers minor concussion after taking line drive off head  —  FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — The serene and carefree atmosphere of Spring Training was shattered in a moment Friday, when Baltimore reliever Jamie Walker was hit in the back of his head by a line drive.

Mets Bench Coach Prefers Being Heard and Not Seen  —  Jerry Manuel sat in his hotel room in Dearborn, Mich., early in the 2000 season watching his Chicago White Sox eke out a tense victory against the Detroit Tigers when he started planning a welcome back party.

Five National League Bullpens in Flux  —  In writing a series of team previews for Beyond the Boxscore, I've discovered that forecasting bullpens in February is fraught with difficulty.  I suppose that's obvious, but as I've tried to project the relief performance of teams like the Mariners …

Here's a bombshell: Jeet-Rod drama not a Bronx issue  —  Miller: Five things to know  —  TAMPA, Fla. — Let me ask you something.  —  When Barry Bonds wrapped his hands around Jeff Kent's throat in the middle of that game in 2002 and was pulled away before he made like a crumpled Pepsi can with Kent …

Hard-charging Giles brothers reunited on hometown Padres  —  SAN DIEGO (AP) - Brian Giles never gave it a second thought, even though that was his little brother Marcus covering second base for the Atlanta Braves.  —  With runners on first and third and one out, Brian slammed into Marcus and knocked him head-over-heels.

Blue Jays sign Matumoto  —  DUNEDIN, Fla. (CP) - Calling pitcher Jo Matumoto an underdog wouldn't even begin describing the long odds the Brazilian left-hander faces of ever pitching in the major leagues.  —  But thanks to his determined wife, the clout of agent Randy Hendricks …

Extra Innings Deal Has F.C.C.'s Attention  —  For five or six minutes yesterday, there was delicious speculation that Major League Baseball would officially announce its extremely pending $700 million deal with DirecTV to carry its Extra Innings package of out-of-market games.  —  It didn't happen.

Space oddity  —  Dodgers' prospect goes from LaRoche to La Roche  —  VERO BEACH, FLA. — Andy La Roche wants a little space.  Is that so wrong?  —  From now on, he said, his name should be spelled with a space before Roche, not as LaRoche, as the Dodgers have spelled it since he was drafted in 2003.

Imagine a world with Rays in the penthouse … ST. PETERSBURG - What if they mattered?  —  What if they were good?  —  The Devil Rays open their 10th spring training camp today, and shockingly, the public schools have not closed for the holiday.  If you judge by the fans who showed …

Eckstein plays on, mindful of the business  —  JUPITER, FLA. — December 2004 burned a two-week hole in David Eckstein's eternal optimism.  —  It's still there.  —  Two years into his term with the Cardinals and eight months shy of possible free agency, Eckstein speaks enthusiastically …