Yankees and Rodriguez Receive Approval for Deal  —  Four weeks after Alex Rodriguez walked away from his contract with the Yankees, he and the club have gained approval for a marketing deal tied to his home run milestones, the last significant step in completing a contract that restores Rodriguez to the Yankees' roster.

Minaya needs to steal Yanks' thunder  —  For much of the last eight weeks, the Mets have been no more visible than an indoor lacrosse team.  They preferred the anonymity at first, if only because they needed a sanctuary from the wonder of their own gutless ways.

16 months after crash, Duaner Sanchez back on comeback trail to Mets  —  PORT ST. LUCIE - On a mound shielded from the drizzle outside, and just 20 feet from the spot where his recovery from a taxi-cab accident suffered a serious setback, Duaner Sanchez's right foot is touching the rubber for the first time since March.

SERBY'S SUNDAY Q&A WITH...  HANK STEINBRENNER  —  The Post's Steve Serby chatted with the new Yankees boss about his expectations for 2008 and beyond, his life as George Steinbrenner's oldest son, and his memories of a lifetime in and around the world's most famous ballclub.

Joe was a joy to be around  —  Grief is a powerful emotion.  It's hard to breathe in it.  It leaves us helpless, angry and confused.  —  Those emotions swirled inside Friday as I learned of Joe Kennedy's death.  I was attending the CU-Nebraska game when a message popped on my phone.

Pirates inquire about Clement  —  Free agent coming off shoulder surgery  —  The Pirates are one of six teams to have contacted free-agent starter Matt Clement, a Butler native returning from shoulder surgery, but it is far from certain they will be a serious bidder.

Top 10 under-the-radar free agents  —  LIKE THIS STORY?  —  The 2007-08 class of free agents was already a relatively weak one, and now that the ranks are dwindling by the day, it's even less impressive.  —  With that in mind, let's overlook for the moment the remaining marquee names …

Rangers continue their hunting  —  After missing on center fielder Hunter, Daniels keeps looking  —  Torii Hunter is on his way to California to play for the Angels and the Rangers are mulling their next options for an offseason that is only just beginning to heat up.

Hampton pitches one inning in rehab start  —  Braves left-hander Mike Hampton pitched one inning and allowed one hit with one strikeout in his Mexican Winter League debut Thursday for Novojoa, the first of seven starts he's scheduled to make as he embarks on his latest comeback bid.

Boras still has Pena's confidence  —  The amount the Rays will have to pay 1B Carlos Pena after his AL comeback player of the year performance remains a mystery.  —  Pena's friends were in an uproar last week, texting and calling his cell phone when they heard he placed ninth in the AL MVP voting.

Angels' deal could be sign Cabrera is next  —  After signing Torii Hunter, the Angels have a stockpile of outfielders to package in a trade for Miguel Cabrera.  —  AIM cspencer@MiamiHerald.com  —  It was a quiet Thanksgiving for the Marlins, who made a holiday splash two years ago …