Jeff Can't Make Hall of Fame  —  Not sure if you saw it, but former Met great Jeff Kent retired yesterday.  Now we ask, is he a Hall of Famer?  —  There's a guy who works here at The Daily News who insists Kent is Cooperstown bound.  No doubt about it, he says.  I hear the same sentiment on radio and TV.

Red Sox ‘Truck Day’ is Feb. 6  —  In what has become an annual sign that spring is around the corner in Boston, “Truck Day” will arrive on Friday, Feb. 6, when the Red Sox moving van will be loaded at Fenway Park for the 1,467-mile trek to the team's spring training complex on Edison Ave. in Fort Myers …

Sources: Catcher Blanco, Pads agree  —  The Padres reached an agreement on a one-year, $750,000 deal with catcher Henry Blanco on Wednesday, according to sources close to the situation.  —  San Diego had been in negotiations with Blanco and veteran Brad Ausmus, but began focusing on Blanco …

Rangers' farm system second to none  —  STAY AHEAD OF THE GAME START YOUR FREE TRIAL NOW  —  As a prelude to Thursday's publication of the top 100 prospects in baseball for 2009, I've ranked all 30 organizations on the current states of their farm systems.

Melhuse back with Rangers  —  ARLINGTON — The Rangers have agreed to terms with veteran catcher Adam Melhuse on a Minor League contract with an invitation to Spring Training.  —  Melhuse, highly regarded by manager Ron Washington for his leadership and work ethic, has played for the Rangers in parts of the last two seasons.

Long excited about lineup upgrade  —  Yanks hitting coach brings high hopes to offseason workouts  —  NEW YORK — During the season, Kevin Long's office is the batting cage, a place he spends so many hours that he often eats his pregame meals standing up.  —  The winter offers …

Angels welcoming 25 players to Tempe  —  Former top pick Conger leads non-roster invitees into Spring Training  —  Five catchers and 12 pitchers are among the 25 non-roster players who have been extended invitations to attend Spring Training with the Angels, general manager Tony Reagins disclosed on Wednesday.

Braves seek to bring back Sutton to booth  —  Ex-Braves announcer would be paired with new hire Powell  —  The Braves have hired Jim Powell for their radio-broadcast team and are working to bring back Don Sutton to be his new partner, according to several people familiar with the negotiations.

The 3400 Club  —  By Tim Dierkes [January 21 at 12:37pm CST]  —  Longtime RotoAuthority reader finite24 brought up an interesting topic recently: injury risk the following season for pitchers who threw 3500+ pitches.  I decided to dig more deeply into this topic, pulling the benchmark down to 3400 pitches thrown in a season.

Report: Brewers, Fielder working on 2-year deal  —  By Tom Haudricourt of the Journal Sentinel  —  I was just watching the MLB Network and SI.com's Tom Verducci said he heard that the Brewers were trying to hammer out a two-year deal with Prince Fielder.  —  And, you know what?  I believe it.

Rose over the 'Moon about Redding  —  New Mets pitcher sure to provide lots of material for broadcasts  —  NEW YORK — Even now, sportscaster Howie Rose is planning his ad-libs, plotting when to offer a “Bang, zoom” or a “Har, har, hardee har har.”  He might throw in a “Hello, ball” …

Belisle contract contains an out clause  —  Rockies' pitcher Matt Belisle, signed to provide depth and competition in spring training, secured a measure of protection in his contract.  He signed an $800,000-minor-league contract, plus incentives for innings and games pitched.

Third base remains Minnesota mystery  —  Twins struggling to find power hitter and solid glove to play the hot corner  —  MINNEAPOLIS — For nearly half a decade, third base has been an enigma for the Twins.  —  Since Corey Koskie left as a free agent after the 2004 season …