Top News:
Ken Rosenthal / Fox Sports:
Padres would be logical choice for Prior — LIKE THIS STORY? — Logic dictates that the Padres are Mark Prior's first choice. Not only is he from San Diego, but he also might thrive by staying in the National League and pitching at spacious Petco Park.
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Dejan Kovacevic / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:
Pirates Notebook: Dotel, Chacon on relief radar — But team wary of committing too much for bullpen help — Octavio Dotel is out there, as is old acquaintance Shawn Chacon. — And the Pirates have spoken with the representatives for each of those free-agent relievers. — Sounds like a match, right?
Sports Illustrated:
The fallout continues — Clemens among big losers; redemption for Duquette — Roger Clemens' denials are getting louder and somehow less convincing as he attempts to extricate himself from the steroid allegations made against him in the bombshell, worth-every-penny Mitchell Report …
Discussion:
WasWatching.com
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Steve Kettmann / New York Times:
‘Juiced’ Ghostwriter: I Told You So — Whatever else its eventual impact, the Mitchell report last week immediately recasts the importance of the small library of books documenting — and in some cases, shaping — baseball's steroid era. — In fact, given its timing and high profile …
New York Times:
Clemens Strongly Denies Allegations by His Ex-Trainer — Roger Clemens unleashed the equivalent of a verbal fastball Tuesday, forcefully denying the allegations that Brian McNamee, his former personal trainer, made about his using steroids and human growth hormone.
Ken Davidoff / Newsday:
Mets add to bullpen with Wise — The Mets added to their bullpen by signing righthander Matt Wise to a one-year, $1.2 million contract on Tuesday. (AP File Photo) — The Mets, in an effort to add depth to their beleaguered bullpen, signed free-agent righthander Matt Wise to a one-year, $1.2-million contract yesterday.
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TwinCities.com:
Charley Walters: Boston Red Sox still in lead for Minnesota Twins ace Johan Santana — The Boston Red Sox remain the favorite to acquire Johan Santana from the Twins, insiders say. — Boston remains firm, though, as initially reported by the Pioneer Press, in offering just Jon Lester, Coco Crisp, Jed Lowrie and Justin Masterson.
Dave Zirin / CounterPunch:
George Mitchell's Drugs of Choice — The Mitchell Report on steroids is shaking the baseball world from cap to cleats. It names 86 players, and calls for a vast reformation of what is being called “the steroid era” in Major League Baseball. The 20-month, $20 million investigation has been accepted as gospel by the hoi polloi.
emedia.thetimes-tribune.com:
Plans for Miranda and expecations for relievers — Caught up with farm director Mark Newman this afternoon. We didn't talk long and we didn't talk about anything earth shattering, but it's interesting stuff just the same. Among the topics: The first base situation in Triple-A …
Mitchel Lichtman / Hardball Times:
Does reliever over-use lead to poor subsequent performance? — In a Nov. 30 article in the Philadelphia Daily News by Paul Hagen, Braves senior advisor and former big-league manager Jim Fregosi had this to say about relievers who have a good year followed by a bad year or vice versa:
Discussion:
WasWatching.com
Joe Strauss / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
Cardinals sign infielder Jimenez — Hoping to discover quality among quantity, the Cardinals agreed to terms with former Cincinnati Reds starting shortstop D'Angelo Jimenez on a minor-league contract Tuesday. — Jimenez, who turns 30 on Friday, becomes another candidate in the Cardinals' search …
Mark Feinsand / NY Daily News:
‘Mad’ Mariano attempting to squeeze option year as Yankee deal nears — Mariano Rivera eventually may accept the three-year, $45 million deal the Yankees have offered him, but the closer isn't quite ready to do so just yet. — It appears as though Rivera has given up on the idea of getting …
Sports Illustrated:
Rose on Mitchell Report: Steroids users “making a mockery” of baseball — NEW YORK (AP) -Pete Rose thinks players who use steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs are “making a mockery” of baseball. — The career hits leader, banned by the sport for gambling, weighed in on the Mitchell Report …
Todd Zolecki / The Zo Zone:
Range Factor Equals Head Scratchers? — The Bill James Handbook 2008 lists Range Factor for every position other than first base and catcher. Range Factor is the number of successful chances (putouts plus assists) times nine, divided by the number of defensive innings played.
Discussion:
MetsBlog.com