Hall's Vets elect no one in 2007  —  Santo, Harvey lead balloting; no candidate receives 75 percent  —  Ron Santo inched a little closer to Cooperstown on Tuesday, but came up five votes short of baseball immortality.  —  Voting by the Veterans Committee for the National Baseball Hall …

Albany DA raids Fla. steroids center  —  Yearlong investigation of Internet drug sales may expose use by pro athletes  —  Click byline for more stories by writer.  —  Copyright Times Union  —  ORLANDO, Fla. — A downtown pharmacy was raided by a law enforcement task force on Tuesday …

An Open Letter to Murray Chass  —  Hi, Murray.  —  I write to you as one baseball fan to another.  There are only a few of us who are fortunate enough to have turned our love for baseball into a career.  We are both in that lucky group.  That's why I was disappointed to read the following in your column today.

Next big things?  Mets prospects make waves  —  PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. - Imagine a 6-foot-4 outfielder who is faster than Jose Reyes.  —  The Mets have him.  —  Now imagine an 18-year-old outfielder whose pure hitting ability is reminiscent of a young Manny Ramirez.  —  The Mets have him, too.

Notes: Not as hectic for Hatteberg  —  First baseman more at ease in second spring with Reds  —  SARASOTA, Fla. — The pace of Reds Spring Training hasn't been quite as frenetic this year for first baseman Scott Hatteberg.  —  Hatteberg first came to the Reds when he signed late as a free agent on Feb. 12, 2006.

Ponson has a serious visa issue  —  Wait for proper permit frustrates Ryan, Gardenhire  —  FORT MYERS, Fla. — For a guy who admittedly is down to his last chance in baseball, Sidney Ponson hasn't shown his new team a sense of urgency.  —  And that is hurting the oft-troubled veteran pitcher's chances …

Education still a priority for standout baseball player  —  WEST SPRINGFIELD, Mass.(CNS) — Long before Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Chris Capuano reported to spring training this year he was doing his homework, working out and preparing for what he hopes will be another All-Star season.

Reed, Broussard remain upbeat  —  Fringe players likely will take on lesser roles for Mariners or could be traded  —  PEORIA, Ariz. — Jeremy Reed and Ben Broussard have less reason than anyone in camp to be pleased with the Mariners' direction.  —  Reed, the former starting center fielder …

Crain signs three-year deal with Twins  —  Right-handed reliever to stay in Minnesota through 2009  —  FORT MYERS, Fla. — The Twins have thus far been unable to lock up closer Joe Nathan with a contract extension, but they may have locked up their closer of the future on Tuesday.

Life of Brian on the upswing  —  Changes at bat keep Anderson in Sox' CF picture  —  TUCSON, Ariz. — All of a sudden, the talk surrounding Brian Anderson isn't as harsh.  —  That's quite a change from last September, when White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen began issuing threats to the center fielder …

Whole organization easing assimilation … FORT MYERS, Fla. — Daisuke Matsuzaka's mind worked furiously.  The camera clicks sounded like a thousand typewriters, his every twitch broadcast around the world, in at least two languages.  There he was, in front of millions of people, momentarily stumped.

Joke is on Jeter!  —  President and Mantle pop up on Topps' gag baseball card  —  It's hard to Topps this one: The card company has issued a Derek Jeter baseball card with a smiling President Bush in the stands.  —  But there's something very wrong with that picture: Bush wasn't really at the game that day.

Intersquad Updates  —  I'll keep a log going until the clubhouse opens in a bit...  FIRST INNING:  —  Igawa looks smooth.  Brett Gardner bunted his first pitch for a single; Igawa was a bit slow covering the bag.  But he got Bronson Sardinha to ground into a double play to Derek Jeter.

Notes: Miller strains calf in tune-up  —  Backup catcher has MRI to determine extent of injury  —  PHOENIX — Veteran catcher Damian Miller was forced out of the Brewers' intrasquad game on Tuesday with a strained left calf and was to undergo an MRI scan later in the day to determine the extent of the damage.

Notes: Hampton progressing at camp  —  Southpaw recovering from surgery, likely to miss first start  —  LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — To determine how Mike Hampton fared while throwing his latest session of batting practice, one must decide whether to side with Hampton's cautious evaluation …

Manager could be in Mattingly's future  —  New bench coach a popular pick to eventually succeed Torre  —  TAMPA, Fla. — On a recent afternoon at Legends Field, Don Mattingly was perched behind the Yankees' batting cage as four of the team's top hitters ripped drives around the ballpark.

Stats Geek: Giles-Bay run has been a hit for Pirates  —  By Brian O'Neill, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette  —  Would you believe the Pirates' left fielder these past eight seasons has put up Cooperstown-worthy numbers?  —  Of course you wouldn't, unless you realize I'm talking about two guys.