Top News:
Roger Rubin / NY Daily News:
L.A. reportedly makes Manny offer of $25M — The Dodgers made Manny Ramirez a one-year contract offer for $25 million Monday night, according to the Los Angeles Daily News. — The deal is only on the table for Ramirez and agent Scott Boras for 48 hours, according to a report on ESPN.com.
Discussion:
MLB Rumors, Mike Scioscia's Tragic Illness, MLB FanHouse, MetsBlog.com and River Avenue Blues
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Dylan Hernandez / Los Angeles Times:
Manny Ramirez turns down Dodgers offer — Free-agent outfielder rejects a one-year, $25-million proposal his agent categorizes as a suggestion. — Manny Ramirez wasted no time rejecting the Dodgers' latest offer, a one-year, $25-million proposal that was presented Sunday to his agent, Scott Boras.
Jeff Zrebiec / Baltimore Sun:
O's, Wigginton agree to two-year deal — O's stay active, add versatile infielder — The Orioles continued their busy offseason today, agreeing to terms on a two-year, $6 million deal with versatile infielder Ty Wigginton. The deal is pending a physical, which is expected to take place later this week in Baltimore.
John Tomase / Boston Herald:
Manny: All dollars, no sense — + Recent Articles + Recent Blog Entries + Email + Bio — To say Manny Ramirez [stats] is someone else's problem right now isn't quite accurate, since at the moment he's no one else's problem. — Ramirez made sure of that by turning down a one-year …
Discussion:
Over the Monster
Buster Olney / ESPN:
Source: Dodgers turn to Dunn, Hudson — Now that Manny Ramirez has rejected the Los Angeles Dodgers' latest contract offer of one year and $25 million, the team is considering alternatives — including further pursuit of ongoing negotiations with slugger Adam Dunn and second baseman Orlando Hudson.
Tony Jackson / Inside the Dodgers:Dodgers make second offer to Manny Ramirez: one year, $25 million
Wall Street Journal:
Citi Explores Breaking Mets Deal — Bank That Got Bailout Cash Revisits $400 Million Pact to Put Name on Stadium — Citigroup Inc., eager to quell the controversy over how lenders are using government bailout money, is exploring the possibility of backing out of a nearly $400 million marketing deal …
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Del Quentin Wilber / Washington Post:
Clemens's DNA Is Linked to Syringes — Attorney Says Tests 'Won't Matter at All' — Scientific tests have linked Roger Clemens's DNA to blood in syringes that a personal trainer says he used to inject the former star pitcher with performance-enhancing drugs, according to two sources familiar with the investigation.
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Ted Keith / Sports Illustrated:
Ted Keith: Why the Mets are gambling on Perez … In baseball, potential comes with a spotlight, and sometimes a noose, but it rarely comes with a easily determined price tag, at least not for players who have had ample time to test potential against performance.
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Ben Shpigel / New York Times:Mets Stick to the Plan on a Contract for Pérez
Discussion:
The Mets Are Better Than Sex
Wallace Matthews / Newsday:
It's time for Jeter to step up, defend Rodriguez — The official story is that nearly eight years ago, Alex Rodriguez implied in a magazine story that Derek Jeter's place in a batting order coincided perfectly with the number on his back. Jeter was a No. 2 hitter, A-Rod seemed to be saying …
Tim Dierkes / MLB Rumors:
Red Sox Sign Brad Wilkerson — By Tim Dierkes [February 2 at 11:03pm CST] — MLBTR has learned tonight that the Red Sox have signed outfielder Brad Wilkerson to a minor league deal with roster and playing time incentives. Wilkerson, 31, hit .220/.308/.326 in 309 plate appearances for the Mariners and Blue Jays in 2008.
Discussion:
Fire Brand of the …, Baseball Insider, All Things Rockies, The Bottom Line, WEEI Blogs and Main Board
Jonathan Littman / Yahoo! Sports:
Giambi's testimony lacks blunt force — Buzz up! — SAN FRANCISCO - Jason Giambi told a federal grand jury in 2003 that he didn't know whether Barry Bonds was taking banned substances and that he never gained any information about the home run king's alleged drug regimen from his contacts at BALCO.
Fairpole:
Fairpole: Baseball Toaster To Be Unplugged, Disassembled For Scraps — If you've been paying attention lately, you've noticed that Baseball Toaster has had a bunch of its knobs and switches and dials and wires fall off in recent months. Today, with the largest part of our engine leaving …
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Buster Olney / ESPN:
Doctor says Griffey now in much better shape — Ken Griffey Jr. talked with his doctor about possibly having his left knee fixed midway through last season, but in the end, he decided to try to play through the problem, to play through the weakness. — “We shot it and we treated it and we rehabbed it …
Jason Parks / Baseball Time in Arlington:
BBTiA Scouting Series: Justin Smoak — When deciding whether or not to go forward with this series, I relied heavily on those already in the scouting world for advice. Scouting players is a very difficult challenge, and despite my egotistical belief in my own ability …
John Hickey / seattlepi.com Mariners blog:
M's maneuverability limited if big salaries can't be dumped — Ten days hence, the Seattle Mariners begin gathering in Peoria, Ariz. — It's been an off-season of change, including a new general manager, a new manager, a new coaching staff and a revamped roster.
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