Top News:
Bryan Hoch / MLB.com:
Pettitte holding onto his pinstripes — Veteran left-hander agrees to incentive-laden, one-year deal — NEW YORK — Andy Pettitte never needed to hear the offers that might have awaited him in free agency. He had decided that by the time winter turned to spring, he would have somehow wound up back with the Yankees.
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Bryan Hoch / MLB.com:
Pettitte holding onto his pinstripes — Veteran left-hander signs incentive-laden, one-year deal — NEW YORK — Andy Pettitte is still a Yankee. — Yankees GM Brian Cashman held a conference call with Pettitte on Monday afternoon to announce that they agreed to a one-year contract …
New York Post:
ON 2ND THOUGHT, PUT JOBA IN 'PEN — NOW that Andy Pettitte is signed, sealed and finally delivered, it's time the Yankees throw a high, hard one at the opposition. Forget about Joba Chamberlain being in the rotation - he needs to go back to the bullpen. From Day 1 of spring training.
Cjennings / Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees Blog:Minor league impact of Pettitte's major league contract
Tony Massarotti / Boston Globe:
Varitek deadline set for Saturday — Jason Varitek filed for free agency more than three months ago. By the end of the day Saturday, we should all know whether the Red Sox catcher and captain will be returning to the team this year. — A baseball source confirmed this morning that the Red Sox …
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Ian Browne / MLB.com:
Red Sox give Varitek deadline on offer — Boston reportedly asks veteran catcher for decision by Saturday — BOSTON — The Red Sox should know by the end of the week if Jason Varitek, their primary catcher since 1999, will be part of their 2009 squad. — The Boston Herald — citing a …
Discussion:
The House That Dewey Built
Peter Abraham / The LoHud Yankees Blog:
Pettitte's deal is done — Conference call in a few minutes. I'll post some audio as soon as I can. — It's a $5.5 million deal that could balloon to as much as $12 million based on innings pitched and roster time. As I've written here for weeks, it makes complete sense and creates great flexibility in the rotation.
Discussion:
River Avenue Blues, MLB FanHouse, NY Daily News, iYankees, Pinstriped Scranton, Bronx Baseball Daily and Yankees N More
Tony Massarotti / Boston Globe:For Varitek, offer may have a catch
Discussion:
Boston Herald, The Bottom Line, sox1fan.com, Boston Sports Media Watch, MLB FanHouse and River Avenue Blues
Dejan Kovacevic / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:
Pirates add Fogg-like pitcher Vasquez — Hearing dates set for McLouth, Maholm; payroll near $50 million — If there is a familiar feel to the statistics of Virgil Vasquez, the pitcher the Pirates claimed off waivers yesterday from the Detroit Tigers, there probably is a reason …
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Dejan Kovacevic / PBC Blog:
Pirates claim pitcher Virgil Vasquez — The Pirates today claimed starter Virgil Vasquez off waivers from the San Diego Padres, adding him to the 40-man roster. — Vasquez, a 26-year-old right-hander, went 12-12 with a 4.81 ERA for the Detroit Tigers' Class AAA affiliate.
Matthew Cerrone / MetsBlog.com:
Starting Pitcher: Rangers, Brewers and Perez — Last night on MLB Network's Hot Stove Show, SI.com's Jon Heyman said there are ‘rumblings’ that the Rangers and Brewers are interested in free-agent LHP Oliver Perez. — However, Heyman still believes Perez and the Mets will eventually work out a deal …
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Jose De Jesus Ortiz / Houston Chronicle:
Astros sign Rodriguez, Geary to one-year deals — Club avoids arbitration with pair of pitchers — Meeting their deadline to work out deals before having to hunker down for arbitration hearings, the Astros signed starting lefthander Wandy Rodriguez and reliever Geoff Geary to one-year contracts.
Discussion:
Bottom9 Baseball
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ESPN.com:
Justice, Gooden deny Radomski's allegations — David Justice and Dwight Gooden denied allegations made by former Mets clubhouse attendant Kirk Radomski during an exclusive interview with “Outside the Lines” on Sunday. Radomski told ESPN that Justice lied about knowing him and purchasing …
Discussion:
Fox Sports
Maury Brown / The Biz of Baseball:
Will Ryan Howard Win His Arbitration Case? — There's little denying that Ryan Howard has been a league-leader since being called up from the minors. NL Rookie-of-the Year in 2005, NL MVP and All-Star in 2006, 5th in NL MVP voting in 2007, and 2nd in NL MVP voting last year, he's racked up a collection of awards.
Discussion:
Phillies
Peter Abraham / The LoHud Yankees Blog:
The details on Pettitte's deal — Base salary: $5.5 million. — Innings bonuses: $500,000 each for 150, 160 and 170 innings pitched and $750,000 each for 180, 190, 200 and 210 innings. — Roster bonuses: $100,000 for 120 days on the active 25-man roster, $200,000 for 130 days …
Jack Etkin / Rocky Mountain News:
Atkins looks forward to 2009 with Rockies — Third baseman Garrett Atkins is pointing toward the 2009 season with the Rockies, something he didn't foresee happening when 2008 ended. — “I figured they would trade either me or Matt (Holliday), going in (to the offseason),” Atkins said.
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Associated Press:
Counsell gets 1-year, $1M deal from Brewers — MILWAUKEE (AP) — Craig Counsell and the Milwaukee Brewers completed a $1 million, one-year contract on Monday after the veteran infielder passed a physical. — The 38-year-old Counsell spent the past two seasons with the Brewers …
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Associated Press
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Aaron Gleeman / KING-TV:
Draft Strategy: Park Factoring — One of the common misconceptions when it comes to “park factors” is that the quality of a team's lineup and pitching staff drives the number. For instance, whenever I write that Michael Young is overrated in part because his offensive stats have been padded …
