A-Rod to DH due to sore shoulder  —  Yankees third baseman skips throwing session  —  TAMPA, Fla. — Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez has a sore right shoulder and is scheduled to be the designated hitter in Friday's game against Houston.  —  Rodriguez said he felt discomfort Thursday …

Orioles' Patton headed for surgery; out until '09  —  FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Troy Patton will undergo season-ending shoulder surgery, delaying the left-hander's debut with the Baltimore Orioles until at least 2009.  —  Obtained in the December trade that sent Miguel Tejada to the Houston Astros …

Dice-K likely to go to Japan after team  —  FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP)—Daisuke Matsuzaka probably won't fly to Tokyo with his teammates because his wife's due date is March 19, the date of the flight, but the Red Sox hope he can join them in his native country.  —  Boston will play exhibition …

Yankees-Astros: The live blog  —  Good afternoon and welcome to Legends Field.  It's a balmy 79 degrees and mostly sunny here in Tampa as the Yankees prepare to play the Houston Astros.  —  The Yankees beat the Astros 7-6 on Monday and you can bet Houston will be itching for revenge.  Or maybe not.

Braves' Hampton leaves with groin injury  —  KISSIMMEE, Fla. (AP)—Oft-injured pitcher Mike Hampton of the Atlanta Braves left his spring training start Friday because of a strained right groin.  —  Hampton, who hasn't pitched in a major league game since August 2005, made it to the second inning …

Cubs cut nine, trim roster to 50  —  MESA, Ariz. — The Cubs trimmed their Spring Training roster by nine on Friday, sending Billy Petrick and Tyler Colvin, among others, to the Minor League camp.  —  Petrick was optioned to Triple-A Iowa.  The others were non-roster invitees, and they were assigned to the Minor League camp.

Baseball Hall of Fame Considering “Steroid Exhibit”  —  It's been called the “Steroid Era” in baseball, and now, the Baseball Hall of Fame may be creating a “Steroid Exhibit”.  Today, Jeff Idelson, the vice-president of communications and education for the Hall of Fame was on the Dan Patrick Show, where Patrick brought up the topic.

Baseball Taps Wisdom of Fans  —  If you've ever dreamed of being a Major League Baseball scout, your day has come.  —  Last month, the St. Louis Cardinals announced a novel contest: Fans are invited to submit scouting reports on promising college ballplayers.

Lee says Hunter told him Cubs never called  —  MESA, Ariz. — Forget what White Sox general manager Ken Williams says.  Cubs first baseman Derrek Lee says it's the Cubs who really lost out on center fielder Torii Hunter over the winter.  —  Lee said he was “shocked” when his longtime friend Hunter told …

Spring training Game 7: Astros at Yankees  —  YANKEES  —  Pitching  —  Andy Pettitte (2-3 innings, 40 pitches)  —  ASTROS  —  Pitching  —  Notes: Mike Mussina will start tomorrow against the Leave Out The Devil Rays.  Jefff Kartstens will follow along with Kyle Farnsworth, Jon Albaladejo and Ross Ohlendorf. ...

Dodgers lose game — and two third basemen  —  Nomar Garciaparra (hit by pitch) and Andy LaRoche (hit taking a throw) both leave the game against the Cardinals.  The team orders up X-rays for both.  —  VERO BEACH, Fla. — First, Nomar Garciaparra was hit on the right hand.  Then, Andy LaRoche.