Top News:
David Lennon / Newsday:
El Duque hopes new windup will work out — Moises Alou found out Wednesday of a hernia in his hip that will cause him to miss the start of the season. (Newsday/David L. Pokress) — PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. - Orlando Hernandez, with a revamped lower leg kick, may not look the same on the mound.
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MetsBlog.com
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Marty Noble / MLB.com:
Alou likely out until May — Outfielder will undergo surgery on Thursday to fix hernia — PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — Each new malady to hit the Mets this spring has prompted a response of “It's better to get it out of the way early” — or some variation on that theme — from manager Willie Randolph …
Joel Sherman / New York Post:
IN DENIAL: INJURY FLURRY CAUSING NO WORRIES — It is early. Keep saying that over and over. None of these injuries is serious. Repeat that non-stop. When faced with questions of age, deny, deny, deny. — The Mets are the Black Knight in “Monty Python and the Holy Grail,” …
David Lennon / On the Mets beat:
Alou out 4-6 weeks — The Mets just announced that Moises Alou will have surgery tomorrow to repair a hernia and will miss the next four to six weeks. Alou was sent back to New York earlier today for further tests after complaining of discomfort in the groin area and the Mets got word of the results this evening.
David Lennon / On the Mets beat:Alou (groin) sent back to New York; Vargas hurting too
Discussion:
Hot Foot
MLB.com:
Chat wrap: Frank Coonelly — Bucs' new president answers fans' questions … scubevol: Do you really think you can compete for a championship against the big-market clubs? — Coonelly: Absolutely. The Pirates will not use economics, our financial resources or the economic system of baseball as a crutch.
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Dejan Kovacevic / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:Spring Training: Middle infield center of bench attention
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Bucs Dugout
Bryan Hoch / MLB.com:
Murcer's biopsy shows no cancer — Broadcaster plans to rest before returning to Yankees' booth — TAMPA, Fla. — Bobby Murcer received “great news” on Wednesday, as a biopsy performed on his brain revealed only scar tissue and no signs of cancer. — “We are very excited about this news,” Murcer said.
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Pinstriped Scranton
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USA Today:
Yankee Stadium set to begin its final season — Plans to raze Yankee Stadium and auction off some of its contents are being put in place by the team and New York City, but don't make any plans for a big haul of memorabilia. — Once the Yankees are settled into their new Yankee Stadium …
Peter Scrivener / BBC:
GB's Olympic baseball dream ends — British Baseball has called UK Sport short-sighted after being forced to pull out of a final Olympic qualifying tournament which starts on Friday. — Team GB have been unable to raise the £40,000 needed to fund the trip to the competition in Taiwan …
Mark Feinsand / NY Daily News:
Cano plans on Star turn in first half — TAMPA - Robinson Cano has hit .342 and .306 in the past two seasons, but he believes there's a lot of room for improvement. — Last season, Cano batted .274 before the All-Star break, then hit .343 in the second half.
Tyler Kepner / New York Times:
Taking Control of His Future — TAMPA, Fla. — Ian Kennedy was not the kind of kid who taped a strike zone to the side of a wall and threw at it all day long. He did not pester friends or family to catch him in the backyard. Kennedy loved to pitch, but there was no need to practice.
Bart Hubbuch / New York Post:
JOHAN REBOUNDS; PEDRO IS UP NEXT — Some vintage Johan Santana gave the injury-ravaged Mets an emotional lift yesterday. — They're hoping they can say the same about Pedro Martinez tonight. — Redeeming himself after a rocky Mets debut last Friday against the Cardinals …
Discussion:
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Bill Ladson / MLB.com:
Notes: Lannan turning heads this spring — Lefty extends scoreless-innings streak, get first Grapefruit win — JUPITER, Fla. — Nationals left-hander John Lannan pitched three shutout innings in a 6-5 victory over the Cardinals on Wednesday and continues to show that he belongs in the starting rotation.
Discussion:
Federal Baseball
Rick Morrissey / Chicago Tribune:
Sox have rhetoric, but what's behind words? — The new ad campaign for the White Sox is “Share the Passion, Show the Swagger,” and it hits all the right notes, as far as those things go. — But I would like to go on record as saying “Show Some Life, For Crying Out Loud” didn't get a fair shake.
Discussion:
South Side Sox
Juan C. Rodriguez / Sun-Sentinel:
Marlins' painful season gives way to hope — JUPITER - The toughest part last season was sitting in the dugout between innings and feeling his elbow tighten, like someone was inflating a blood pressure cuff around it. — Ricky Nolasco already had been on the disabled list once.
Discussion:
FishStripes
Associated Press:
NY congressman asks FBI to drop Clemens probe — WASHINGTON — A Democratic congressman asked the FBI on Wednesday to drop its investigation of Roger Clemens because the pitching great had suffered enough from the probe into steroid use. — Rep. Anthony Weiner, a candidate for New York mayor in 2009 …
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Michael O'Keeffe / NY Daily News:Congressman Anthony Weiner asks FBI to end Roger Clemens investigation
