Top News:
New York Post:
IF PETTITTE SIGNS ELSEWHERE, IN BRONX HE'LL BE A PHONY FOREVER — OVER the past few months, as the economy has tanked, I have received a higher volume of e-mails from fans frustrated at the amounts being offered to players. — Yet, good economy or bad, I almost always stand with the players.
Discussion:
Hardball Times, Hardball, Bugs & Cranks, Sliding Into Home, New Jersey Online and iYankees
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Mark Feinsand / NY Daily News:
Yanks pass on offers to Andy, Abreu — Brian Cashman will be conducting plenty of business in Las Vegas at next week's winter meetings, but when it came to offering arbitration to Bobby Abreu and Andy Pettitte, the Yankees' general manager wasn't interested in rolling the dice.
Kary Booher / Baseball America:
Los Angeles Angels — Baseball America's Top 10 Prospects lists are based on projections of a player's long-term worth after discussions with scouting and player-development personnel. All players who haven't exceeded the major league rookie standards of 130 at-bats or 50 innings pitched (without regard to service time) are eligible.
Discussion:
6-4-2
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ESPN.com:
Teen signs as Japan's first female pro ballplayer — TOKYO — A 16-year-old Japanese girl signed with a regional baseball team Tuesday, becoming the country's first female professional baseball player. — Eri Yoshida, a knuckleball pitcher, will play for the Kobe 9 Cruise in a new independent league starting in April 2009.
Discussion:
baseballimo.com
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David O'Brien / Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
Hampton is gone, while Peavy is ... Come back ... no, good riddance ... Please stay, we need you ... no, please just go. — Does that pretty much summarize the polarizing presence that was Mike Hampton? — While most of his Braves teammates, and apparently a third of our readers …
Discussion:
MLB Rumors
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David O'Brien / Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
Hampton turns down Braves, signs with Astros — Free agent left-hander took less money to be closer to children — Now that he's finally healthy, pitcher Mike Hampton is bolting the Braves. — The veteran free agent agreed to a one-year, $2 million contract with Houston …
Tim Dierkes / MLB Rumors:
24 Free Agents Offered Arbitration — By Tim Dierkes [December 2 at 12:40am CST] — All of the arbitration offers are in. Here's a list of which free agents were offered arbitration. If these players decline the offer and sign elsewhere, the original club will get one or two draft picks.
Discussion:
Sabernomics, MVN, Rays Index, The Bottom Line, Boston Globe, Around the Majors, The Crawfish Boxes, Mets Tailgate, Chuckie Hacks, JSOnline and Brew Crew Ball
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Alyson Footer / MLB.com:
Astros decline any arbitration offers — No compensation for Houston if Wolf, Brocail sign elsewhere — HOUSTON — The Houston Astros declined to offer salary arbitration to all four of their free agents, general manager Ed Wade confirmed on Tuesday. — The Astros had four free agents eligible …
Mark Sheldon / MLB.com:
Reds make pitch for Rhodes — Agent confirms Cincinnati's offer to free-agent left-hander — CINCINNATI — Lefty relief help became a primary need for the Reds once Jeremy Affeldt departed for the Giants as a free agent. — Could that need be filled by veteran Arthur Rhodes?
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Matthew Cerrone / MetsBlog.com:
News: These People will officially Cost Draft Picks
News: These People will officially Cost Draft Picks
Discussion:
Baseball Musings
Carrie Muskat / MLB.com:
Grace just kept hits comin' in his career — First baseman takes 2,445 career knocks to Hall of Fame ballot — When Mark Grace was called up to the Cubs in May 1988, it was to replace a struggling Leon Durham and platoon at first base with Manny Trillo. — “This is something a kid dreams …
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Associated Press:
Canadian sports entrepreneur, cable mogul Ted Rogers dies — TORONTO (AP) — Ted Rogers, creator of Canada's largest cable-television and mobile-phone company and owner of the Toronto Blue Jays, has died, his company said. He was 75. — The founder of Rogers Communications Inc …
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Chris Dutton / Hardball Times:
Batters and BABIP — What we did — Batting average on balls in play—the rate at which batted balls other than home runs become hits—is commonly used as a measure of pitching performance. However, precious little work has been done to explore BABIP from the hitter's perspective.
Keith Groller / Morning Call:
Kruk the same genuine guy off camera — John Kruk doesn't change personalities with the flick of a TV camera light. — The Krukker you see on ESPN's “Baseball Tonight” is the same guy you'll get if you bump into him in line for a beer at the ballpark. — The former Phillies first baseman …
Fred Mitchell / Chicago Tribune:
Reds' Dusty Baker wants to manage Kerry Wood again — Kerry Wood answered the call from the bullpen last season for the Cubs, reinventing himself as a capable closer with 34 saves. — Will he pick up the phone when Dusty Baker from division foe Cincinnati calls him?
Discussion:
Chicago Sun Times, Chris Sabo's Goggles, SPORTSbyBROOKS, MLB FanHouse, Redleg Nation, MLB.com and MLB Rumors
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George Vecsey / New York Times:
Giving the Mets' New Ballpark a Bad Name — With a mixture of rage and pride, I drove past the Mets' new ballpark Monday and noticed that offensive name still up there. — As Citigroup grovels for a bailout from public funds, the Mets insist the name will not change.