Source: Cubs to acquire Heilman  —  The Chicago Cubs have acquired pitcher Aaron Heilman from the Seattle Mariners for infielder Ronny Cedeno and pitcher Garrett Olson, a baseball source told ESPN.com.  —  Heilman and Olson have already been involved in trades this offseason.

D'Backs Agree To Terms With Jon Garland  —  By Tim Dierkes [January 28 at 2:52pm CST]  —  2:52pm: More details from ESPN's Jerry Crasnick: Garland gets $6.25MM in '09 and the 2010 option for $10MM has a $2.5MM buyout if the D'Backs reject it.  If Garland rejects it it's a $1MM buyout.

Joe Torre's poison pen in ‘The Yankee Years’ could be blot on career  —  It turns out that Alex Rodriguez wasn't the only player Joe Torre slammed in his book, “The Yankee Years.”  It is clear, the Daily News found after obtaining a copy of the book, that the ex-Yankee manager didn't hold …

2 Pitchers Warm Up on Stage, Not Mound  —  FAIRFIELD, Conn. — Joba Chamberlain pitches with his right hand and writes with his left.  Jon Lester does the opposite.  Chamberlain is the Yankees' prized young arm, and Lester fills that role for the Boston Red Sox.

Benoit may be lost for season  —  Rangers righty has surgery to repair torn rotator cuff  —  ARLINGTON — The Rangers, still over two weeks away from Spring Training, have suffered another major setback in their pitching staff.  —  Right-hander Joaquin Benoit underwent surgery on Tuesday …

Bowa: Dodgers need Manny  —  At least one person is ready to admit his team needs Manny Ramirez.  Dodgers third-base coach Larry Bowa is adamant that his team should bring back Ramirez, who is a free agent.  —  “I'm going to tell you something right now, if Manny Ramirez doesn't sign with us, we're in deep trouble.

David Weathers signs with Reds  —  The Reds avoided arbitration with David Weathers by signing the bulldog reliever to a one-year contract with an option worth $3.9 million, the Post has learned.  —  Weathers will make $3.5 million this year with a club option for 2010 worth $3.7 million or a $400,000 buyout.

The latest on the best remaining free agents (cont.)  —  9. Joe Crede.  He's said to have a clean bill of health, though past back trouble obviously is worrisome to some.  The Giants, Twins and Rangers have shown interest.  —  10. Randy Wolf.  Depending on reports, Wolf rejected either $22 million …

Jon Heyman: The latest on the best remaining free agents … The stunning thing about this free-agent market isn't that there are still about 100 players without jobs, it's that at least a dozen of the unemployed are excellent players in their prime.  —  It isn't just patient …

Giants to add Clark to front-office post  —  ‘The Thrill’ played in San Francisco for eight seasons  —  SAN FRANCISCO — “The Thrill” is back with the Giants.  —  Will Clark, who remains one of the club's most popular players since the franchise moved to San Francisco in 1958 …

New York Times puts Red Sox stake on the block  —  CHICAGO (Reuters) - The New York Times Co said on Wednesday it hired banking firm Goldman Sachs to help it sell its stake in the Boston Red Sox baseball team.  —  The 17.75 percent stake is in New England Sports Ventures (NESV) …

Chicago Cubs' Alfonso Soriano OK with not being leading man  —  Left fielder also says he wants to play all 162 games  —  Just into the third year of an eight-year, $136 million contract, it is becoming clear Alfonso Soriano has no leg to stand on—so to speak—in insisting he bat leadoff.

Mets sell bonds to complete Citi Field financing  —  NEW YORK — The New York Mets completed financing for Citi Field on Wednesday by selling $82.28 million in tax-free 37-year bonds at what Citigroup said was an average interest rate of 6.45 percent.  —  The bonds from Queens Ballpark Co …