Travis Lee released by Nats  —  KISSIMMEE, Fla. — Travis Lee asked for and was granted his unconditional release by the Washington Nationals on Sunday, making Dmitri Young the starting first baseman as the club made progress on settling its 25-man roster.  —  The Nationals made several moves …

Orioles cut 5, including Penn and Fahey … JUPITER, FLA. // Orioles officials have spent part of the spring boasting about their improved depth, which has given manager Sam Perlozzo more options and harder decisions on his roster makeup.  —  He made a couple of those decisions today …

Oops!  Maybe Sox got it right  —  Getting Danks for McCarthy might make GM look good  —  Scouts don't write glowing reports on pitchers because of their pickoff moves.  Teams certainly don't hand out super-sized bonuses because of them.  —  Even the best prospects often have to work on the little things.

For One Met, Spring Training Is Just Beginning  —  Guillermo Mota is expected to take part in his first workout with the Mets on Monday, showing up right as his teammates are preparing to leave.  For about six weeks, he will remain here in a curious limbo, beginning a spring training program …

Karstens leaves with elbow stiffness  —  Right-hander threw 46 pitches against Tigers on Sunday  —  LAKELAND, Fla. — Yankees right-hander Jeff Karstens left his start against the Tigers on Sunday after two innings with stiffness in his pitching elbow.  —  "I didn't want to push …

Teams with no hope for success  —  In baseball, spring equals hope, right?  —  Every team's got a prayer, everyone's undefeated, optimism abounds, tabula rasa and all that.  —  For most teams, that's certainly the case.  The overwhelming majority of clubs enter the 2007 campaign …

Milwaukee 7, Kansas City 6  —  SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Thirteen months after he left the Kansas City Royals' camp to deal with social anxiety, Zack Greinke is back in the Kansas City Royals' starting rotation.  —  Greinke will be the Royals' No. 3 starter and will pitch in their opening series …

Notes: Cardinals rotation announced  —  Despite off-days, La Russa plans five-man staff to start season  —  JUPITER, Fla. — Cardinals manager Tony La Russa announced his team's pitchers for the first week of the regular season on Sunday.  La Russa said that the club will use all five …

Rockies out to win numbers game  —  Their roster nearly finalized, their optimism fully stoked, it's time to take a closer look at what separates the Rockies from last place and relevance.  The answer is three.  —  This number holds the key to the Rockies posting their first winning season since 2000 …

Braves Do Repairs and Try to Restore What Was Theirs  —  Throughout the Atlanta Braves' unparalleled run of 14 consecutive division championships, nary a player was heard to boast of the team's superior standing, certainly not before a season began.  —  So it is curious that in the first winter …

Ten days of Top 10s: Reasons for hope  —  Sure, these clubs haven't a prayer in 2007, but the future isn't entirely grim.  Here, then, are the ...  1. Devil Rays: The Future  —  With youngsters like Delmon Young, B.J. Upton, Carl Crawford, Scott Kazmir, Reid Brignac …

Royals send Berroa down  —  'Decision speaks for itself,' GM Moore says after shortstop is optioned to Omaha.  —  SURPRISE, Ariz. |  It was a quieter Royals clubhouse Saturday morning as a subdued Angel Berroa silently watched television while slumped in a couch before pregame drills.

In Baseball, Searching for Balance in the Scheduling Vortex  —  As anyone holding his riddled N.C.A.A. tournament bracket will groan, records of college basketball teams — 29-5 here, 18-10 there — are often not what they seem.  The collective strength of a team's opponents over a season plays …