Mets trade Milledge to Nats  —  The Mets have traded Lastings Milledge to the Nationals for catcher Brian Schneider and outfielder Ryan Church, a baseball official confirmed this afternoon.  Milledge was believed to be a major chip in the Mets' pursuit of an elite starting pitcher this offseason, but that apparently was not the case.

Orioles, Bedard stall on contract  —  Talks on extension cool, but aren't over  —  Contract extension talks between the Orioles and Erik Bedard stalled yesterday, increasing the likelihood that team officials will spend part of next week's winter meetings contemplating trade offers for the ace left-hander.

Izturis in at shortstop; Eckstein appears out  —  The Cardinals have reached agreement with free agent shortstop Cesar Izturis on a one-year contract, industry sources confirmed Friday, suggesting that the club will sever ties with three-year incumbent and 2006 World Series MVP David Eckstein.

Torrealba signs deal for two years, option  —  The Rockies don't know what's on second after losing out on Kazuo Matsui and Mark Loretta, but are certain of who their catcher will be.  Yorvit Torrealba's boomerang free-agent tour ended Thursday as he returned to the Rockies, signing a two-year …

Tigers agree to terms on one-year deals with Kenny Rogers and Francisco Cruceta  —  DETROIT — The Detroit Tigers announced today that the club has agreed to terms on a one-year contract with left-handed pitcher Kenny Rogers and right-handed pitcher Francisco Cruceta.

Mr. Clutch  —  Big Papi, Chipper, Pujols come through when it counts … Back in the early days of sabermetrics, when dinosaurs roamed the American League Western Division, we made a very fundamental mistake.  A friend of mine wrote an article asserting, essentially, that clutch hitters don't exist.