Braves claim infielder Ruben Gotay off waivers  —  First baseman Scott Thorman outrighted to Richmond  —  ATLANTA — The Atlanta Braves claimed switch-hitting infielder Ruben Gotay off waivers from the New York Mets today.  He will be on the team's Opening Day 25-man roster.

Joe Girardi, Jedi Master  —  I never thought of Joe Girardi as Yoda.  For one thing, he's not 900 years old.  He's not green.  And while Girardi may carry a baseball bat at times, I've never seen him with a cane.  —  But I couldn't help but think of the Jedi Master from Star Wars on Friday …

Reds to cut Stanton  —  Reds manager Dusty Baker said this morning that the team has told reliever Mike Stanton that they are going let him go.  —  The move means the Reds will eat $3 million of Stanton's contract this season, and $500,000 next season.  —  Last season Stanton was 1-3 with a 5.93 ERA.

Rangers swing a trade  —  The Rangers have made a trade tonight, acquiring Arizona right-hander Dustin Nippert from Arizona for minor league right-hander Jose Marte.  —  We'll try to find out the Rangers' plans for Nippert here in a minute.  —  Nippert, who towers in at 6-7 …

Gameday returns bigger, better  —  Popular application updated with previews, highlights  —  Just think how many Major League Baseball fans have grown accustomed to using MLB.com Gameday.  Gameday is the omnipresent software app that is so often on your computer screen or even mobile phone during a season …

Nats Enjoy An Evening In the Park  —  The family moving into the gleaming new mansion at 1500 South Capitol Street SE, was so big it needed two buses, so awestruck their mouths seemed permanently stuck in the “Wow” position.  And just as any family would, the Washington Nationals walked …

Things I learned from Joe about an hour ago  —  Stopped by the Ravine to get the early word on, well, anything that might be going on as we approach Opening Day, and did get a few nuggets of info from Joe Torre.  Quotes/audio or something similar hopefully to follow, but in the meantime, here's what we know:

Major League Baseball salaries  —  The average player's salary on the New York Yankees rose 17 percent over the past four years, while the salaries for the New York Mets jumped by 24 percent between 2004 and 2007.  Overall, the average player's salary rose 22 percent in Major League Baseball in the past four years.

Mets announce three roster moves  —  Gotay, Register find new homes; Hernandez sent to Triple-A  —  FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — The Mets announced three roster moves on Friday as the team wrapped up Grapefruit League action against the Orioles, beginning with second baseman Ruben Gotay, who was claimed by the Braves.

Ellsbury in right, Coco in center in L.A.  —  J.D. Drew was not in the lineup tonight and may sit the weekend with lower back pain, manager Terry Francona said, although Francona said he was still hopeful Drew might get an at-bat or two against the Dodgers during the three-game set.

‘Taco’ and Me: Following the rise of Brandon Phillips  —  Everyone has a reason for following the players they do.  Maybe you just like the position they play.  Maybe you played against him in high school.  Or maybe you've just followed his career from the start and feel an emotional investment.

Tim Kurkjian and Buster Olney Are Optimistic  —  After thrilling us with their AL predictions yesterday, ESPN released their NL team capsules today.  They're all linked from the MLB Index (although the Rockies' link is broken; their preview is here).  I don't really care about the actual previews at all …

Prospectus Today  —  Spring Lessons  —  I've pounded home the point that you can't learn anything from spring training performances, because of the small samples, the variability of competition, and the fact that people aren't playing to win.  Outside of player performance, though …