FIFTH AVENUE  —  VARGAS COULD FILL OUT ROTATION  —  Claudio Vargas could be a candidate for the Mets' No. 5 starter vacancy.  —  The 29-year-old right hander was released yesterday by the Brewers in a salary dump, and Mets GM Omar Minaya said his club will have a strong interest now that Vargas reportedly has cleared waivers.

Phillies Notebook: Mystery, intrigue as deadline nears for Phillies' final roster spots  —  CLEARWATER, Fla. - At the beginning of spring training, the Phillies clubhouse always resembles a crowded bus terminal with players here, players there, players, players everywhere.

Sox sent packing by Harden, A's … TOKYO - Finally, the Red Sox [team stats] put Japan in their rear-view mirror last night.  —  If they cared to look back, the last sight would not be pretty at all.  —  The Red Sox wound up splitting this historic case of jet-lagged games against the A's with a lackluster 5-1 loss.

The Excerpts From “Vindicated” About Alex Rodriguez  —  Ever since Joe Lavin announced he'd bought a copy of Jose Canseco's Vindicated earlier today, people — OK, some people — have been curious what EXACTLY Canseco said.  After the jump, the selections from Vindicated concerning Alex Rodriguez.

Padres pick up Black's '09 option  —  Manager led San Diego to 89-74 record in first year at helm  —  PEORIA, Ariz. — Standing inside the dugout at Miller Field in Milwaukee in September, Padres general manager Kevin Towers talked glowingly about the job that first-year manager Bud Black did.

Three for the money  —  Mike Mussina has found the fountain of youth, and it resides in the picturesque lake that can be seen on the wall next to his locker.  —  “Lake Mussina,” as it has come to be known, is the centerpiece of a corner of the Yankees' home clubhouse at Legends Field.

Brewers release Vargas  —  Phoenix - In a somewhat surprising move and a definite commitment toward youth, the Brewers just released veteran right-hander Claudio Vargas.  —  The move paves the way for two young pitchers, Manny Parra and Carlos Villanueva, to make the starting rotation, along with Ben Sheets, Jeff Suppan and Dave Bush.

Gibby's 1.12 ERA: 40 years later  —  JUPITER, Fla. — On his way to changing baseball history, Bob Gibson was willing to break baseball tradition.  —  During one particularly low-scoring game in 1968, the Cardinals' opponent had runners on first and third bases with no outs.

Reyes is likely to go to Memphis  —  JUPITER, FLA. — If it was an audition for another club, Anthony Reyes' outing Tuesday against the Washington Nationals ranked as a success.  —  If it was a last pitch for the Cardinals' season-opening rotation, better luck next time.

MLB Transactions  —  View by team:  —  TEAM  —  Agreed to terms with outfielder Reed Johnson, who had been with the Toronto Blue Jays, on a one-year contract; optioned outfielders Sam Fuld and Eric Patterson to Iowa of the Pacific Coast League (AAA); assigned pitcher Les Walrond …

Pirates Acquire Tyler Yates From Braves  —  Dave O'Brien was right - the Braves chose Tyler Yates as the out of options reliever to deal.  They sent him to the Pirates today for a minor league hurler named Todd Redmond.  On Monday, O'Brien said he expected the Braves to trade one of Scott Thorman or Brayan Pena as well.

Sayonara, baseball tradition  —  Baseball used to be a game played with nine men to a side, two managers, four umpires, and the major-league season always opened in Cincinnati.  Come to think of it now, that would be sort of like “Gone With the Wind” opening in Valdosta.  But Cincinnati had a deal, see.

PETTITTE: I'LL BE READY TO GO IN FIRST WEEK  —  WINTER HAVEN, Fla. - Even though Andy Pettitte hasn't pitched since March 17, has just eight spring training innings and won't face live hitters - minor leaguers at that - until Saturday, he believes the Yankees can count on him to start …