Varitek talks moving slowly  —  Representatives for the Red Sox and Jason Varitek are continuing to talk in the wake of the catcher's meeting with owner John Henry last week, but the sides appear no closer to a deal than they have been for weeks.  —  But the closer the Sox get to spring training, the more likely that will all change.

Troy Glaus has shoulder surgery, could miss 12 weeks  —  Two days after appearing at the Cardinals' Winter Warm-Up, third baseman Troy Glaus underwent right shoulder surgery Wednesday that likely will make him unavailable Opening Day, the club announced today.

It's a crime that Keith Hernandez isn't in the Hall of Fame … Go to the water cooler, any water cooler on any day, gurgle the words “baseball” and “Hall of Fame,” and before long you'll have a fight on your hands.  This year especially.  I'm still hearing it:

Source: Ricketts is preferred bidder for Cubs  —  Tribune Co. has selected a favored bidder for the Chicago Cubs and has forwarded the offer to the media company's creditors, sources said today.  —  One person familiar with the process said the endorsed bid was from Thomas Ricketts, president of corporate bond dealer Incapital LLC.

Jon Heyman: These teams are the most likely to get deals done … The 100 or so free agents who remain free, including stars (or near stars) like all-time great slugging savant Manny Ramirez plus Bobby Abreu, Adam Dunn, Orlando Hudson, Oliver Perez and Ben Sheets, shouldn't fret.  Not yet.

Law: 2009 organizational rankings  —  Keith Law ranks the farm systems for all 30 teams, from the Rangers at No. 1 to the Astros at No. 30.

Law: Top 100 prospects  —  Welcome to the second annual ESPN.com ranking of the top 100 prospects in baseball.  Last year's No. 1 prospect, Evan Longoria, ended up winning the American League Rookie of the Year Award, setting a high standard for the player at the top of this year's list.

Henry Blanco  —  Yesterday the Padres announced the signing of veteran catcher Henry Blanco to a one-year deal.  —  Throughout the off-season we have been discussing the idea of bringing in a veteran catcher who could help mentor both our young catchers and our young starting pitchers.

Kent bids farewell as a player  —  Retires after 17 seasons as top home run hitter at second base  —  LOS ANGELES — Fighting the emotions caused by putting an end to a 17-year Major League career, Jeff Kent recalled an important lesson he learned during those years.

Why the Mets Have No Money (and No Manny)  —  One of the more interesting conundrums in sports is how the New York Mets have less money to spend on ballplayers than their crosstown big brother, the New York Yankees.  It boggles the mind further when you realize the Mets' budget is below …

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen  —  This was one of the most entertaining e-mails I've received in a long time.  There's a fan out there, Chris Pavia, who has captured the essence of Bob Sheppard and the late Eddie Layton with terrific impersonations of both.

Cora, Mets complete one-year, $2 million deal … NEW YORK (AP) — Alex Cora and the New York Mets finalized a $2 million, one-year contract Thursday, giving the team a backup infielder who also could displace Luis Castillo at second base.  —  “You win championships with a 25-man roster,” Mets general manager Omar Minaya said.

Reds done shopping for the winter  —  Payroll likely to remain approximately $74 million in 2009  —  Reds Spring Training opens in just over 22 days, but the roster you see when camp starts on Feb. 14 should look just like the one you see now.  —  The Reds have hit the maximum they want to spend …

Cubs undecided on new closer  —  Piniella: Gregg as qualified as Marmol  —  Marmol or Gregg?  Who gets the late-inning call?  —  Kerry Wood has moved on to Cleveland, apparently leaving the Cubs' closer role to Carlos Marmol.  —  Pitching coach Larry Rothschild sounds comfortable with that scenario.

MacPhail: Markakis was top priority  —  Orioles right fielder pleased with direction club is headed  —  BALTIMORE — Moments before Nick Markakis dragged his pen across his new contract, Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail pronounced his offseason a success.