Red Sox sign Pedroia to $40.5M extension  —  The Red Sox rewarded their newest MVP with an extension Wednesday.  —  Second baseman Dustin Pedroia has signed a six-year, $40.5 million extension with Boston through 2014 with a club option for the 2015 season, ESPN's Peter Gammons is reporting.

Hot Stove: CC and the Giants Edition  —  It's now nearly three weeks since the Yankees offered CC Sabathia 140 million of their hard-earned YES Network/New Yankee Stadium dollars.  You may have noticed that CC hasn't said yes.  —  Yet.  —  The Yankees still seem supremely confident that he will, one of these days, weeks or months.

And the first free agent is ..... Russell Branyan.  (UPDATED with contract info).  —  The Mariners first free agent signing is third baseman/hitter Russell Branyan. … “Russell gives us a veteran left-handed bat with power and can be used as a first baseman, third baseman or designated hitter,” said Zduriencik.

Cardinals ink lefty reliever Trever Miller  —  Free agent agrees to one-year deal  —  ST. LOUIS — The St. Louis Cardinals announced today that they have agreed to terms with free-agent relief pitcher Trever Miller on a one-year contract for the upcoming 2009 season.  Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

One Man's Hall of Fame Vote  —  Now that it's OK to say you're a liberal without being forced to live in an underground bunker, I will go ahead and admit it: I am a liberal, especially when it comes time to vote for the Hall of Fame.  For the 12th straight December, I will have the privilege …

Agent: SS Renteria closing in on deal with Giants … The agent for shortstop Edgar Renteria said Wednesday that he's making significant progress toward a deal that would bring the five-time All-Star to the San Francisco Giants.  —  “We're working on it and we're certainly much, much closer …

Yanks watch as Braves aim for A.J.  —  While the Yankees sit and wait for CC Sabathia to decide whether it's worth $140 million to pitch in New York, the Braves have put themselves in position to take one of the other big names off the free-agent market.  —  Just as they were finalizing …

What of the Vazquez trade?  I think....  I've known aces.  Aces have been friends of mine (OK, that's a stretch).  And you, Javier Vazquez, are no ace.  —  That said, Vazquez is a definite middle-rotation upgrade for a Braves team that didn't have any pitcher work 200 innings last season and had only one …

Interview: Rick Peterson, Former Pitching Coach NY Mets, Oakland A's  —  Pitching, pitching, pitching.  As it is often heard throughout baseball, you can never have enough of it.  Seasons are often won or lost by the rotation and the strength of the bullpen.

Braves not interested in Dunn  —  Contrary to a FOXSports.com report, the Braves aren't among the teams interested in Adam Dunn.  The Web site reported Wednesday that the Braves, Mariners and Nationals are among the teams showing interest in the free-agent outfielder.

Crasnick: Nats still searching for identity … The Washington Nationals have gone through numerous incarnations since their big move across the border from Montreal in 2005.  —  They've been a scrappy, overachieving club under manager Frank Robinson.  They've handed out oversized checks …

None of them are K-Rod  —  The Mets just announced the signings of four players — all to minor-league contracts.  —  Here's the official release from the team:  —  FLUSHING, N.Y., December 3, 2008 - Righthanded pitcher Nelson Figueroa, who was 3-3 with a 4.57 ERA for the New York Mets last year …

WILPON NOT WORRIED ABOUT SLOW OFFSEASON  —  Nearly three weeks into free agency and with a gaping hole at closer, the Mets' only major move so far has been re-signing journeyman outfielder Fernando Tatis.  —  But Mets chief operating officer Jeff Wilpon isn't worried about the glacial pace being set by GM Omar Minaya.