Top News:
Associated Press:
Steinbrenner: Yanks' Sabathia offer has time limit — NEW YORK — CC Sabathia will have a deadline to accept the New York Yankees' contract proposal. — “We've made him an offer. It's not going to be there forever,” Hal Steinbrenner said Thursday after he was approved as the team's …
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Associated Press:
‘Tough act to follow’: Hal officially running Yanks — NEW YORK — Major League Baseball owners approved the shift of control of the New York Yankees from George Steinbrenner to his son, Hal, on Thursday. — Hal Steinbrenner and his brother, Hank, took over most of the daily operation of the Yankees from their father last fall.
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Fox Sports, New York Magazine, Big Apple Sports, YanksBlog.com, Rivera's Cutter and It is about the money, stupid
Ken Davidoff / Newsday:
Boss transfers control of Yankees to Hal — The Yankees have named Hal Steinbrenner as their control person, making it eminently clear that it is Hal Steinbrenner, and not his older, more verbose brother Hank, who plays the greater role in the team's operations.
Jayson Stark / ESPN:
Utley to have hip surgery, could be out until June … If the Philadelphia Phillies weren't aware before Thursday of how hard it can be to repeat, the World Series champs know that now. — The team announced Thursday that second baseman Chase Utley will need right hip surgery that potentially …
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Bart Hubbuch / Mets Blog:
Carp added to 40-man roster — The Mets elevated first baseman Mike Carp to their 40-man roster today, increasing said roster to 34 players. Carp, 22, hit .299 with 17 homers and 72 RBIs in 134 games for Double-A Binghamton en route to being named an Eastern League Postseason All-Star and is now playing winter ball in Venezuela.
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Paul DePodesta / It Might Be Dangerous:
Roster Changes — If you've been viewing the transactions of MLB teams the past few days, you've noticed a lot of activity. Today is the deadline for setting the ML roster for purposes of the Rule V draft next month. — First, the rules (well, the shorthand version): 1) …
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Batter's Box Interactive …
Chicagosports / Hardball:
Sox to sign 19-year-old Cuban star Viciedo — Dayan Viciedo talks to the media during a press conference in Hialeah, Fla. in June. He defected and settled in South Florida in May. (AP photo) — The White Sox's collection of talented Cubans is growing.
Jenifer Langosch / MLB.com:
Pirates add five to 40-man roster — Former top pick Walker could compete for job in Spring Training — PITTSBURGH — In preparation for the Rule 5 Draft on Dec. 11, Pirates general manager Neal Huntington finalized the team's 40-man roster on Thursday by filling all five open spots.
Jayson Stark / ESPN:
Supply outweighs demand when it comes to closers market — As millions of residents of Queens, St. Louis and Cleveland could testify, there was a time — oh, about two months ago — when no one could have dreamed that one day we all would get to live in a world where the supply of closers would exceed the demand.
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MLB.com:
Frank Wren chat transcript — Busy GM talks Hot Stove with Braves fans online … Wren: Welcome, everyone. It seems like the offseason has been going on for six months instead of a month and a half. I'll try to answer as many questions as possible. — glenn1981: What pitchers are you targeting, if any, in the trade world?
Chris Haft / MLB.com:
Giants heighten interest in Hudson — Free agent widely considered top second-base option — SAN FRANCISCO — The Giants' pursuit of free-agent second baseman Orlando Hudson, previously considered casual, is apparently serious. — Two industry sources said on Thursday that the Giants …
Discussion:
MLB Rumors
For the Record:
QUOTE(#8): … ok..since when were they called fantastic 4? pavano won 18 btw n that was prolly his only 13+ win season. vazquez has the stuff 2 b good but was never a big-game player like lowe is. brown was good-grt but was past his prime when the yanks got him. as 4 jarret wright...does he still even pitch?
The Times-Tribune:
Yankees add four pitchers to 40-man — Four pitchers were added to the Yankees 40-man roster on Thursday, filling each of the roster's openings without taking anyone off. Added to the roster were Anthony Claggett, Steven Jackson, Michael Dunn and Chris Garcia. All four would have been Rule 5 eligible if not protected.
Mark Sheldon / MLB.com:
Reds focused on acquiring bullpen help — Need left-handed reliever as a result of Affeldt going to Giants — CINCINNATI — As expected, following free-agent left-handed reliever Jeremy Affeldt's departure earlier this week, the Reds have increased their efforts to get more bullpen help.
Discussion:
MLB Rumors
JSOnline:
Yankees still interested in Cameron — By Tom Haudricourt of the Journal Sentinel — According to a report by the Newark Star-Ledger, the Yankees are still interested in acquiring centerfielder Mike Cameron from the Brewers. — The Brewers and Yankees talked about Cameron …
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Dan Graziano / New Jersey Online:
Yankees to pursue Mike Cameron for center field
Yankees to pursue Mike Cameron for center field
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River Avenue Blues
Peter Abraham / The LoHud Yankees Blog:
It's official: Mussina has retired — This release from the Yankees: — Five-time All-Star Mike Mussina today announced his retirement from Baseball. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Mussina becomes the first pitcher to retire immediately following a 20-win season since Hall …
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