Blue Jays claim Burres off waivers  —  Left-hander has starting and relieving experience with Orioles  —  TORONTO — The Blue Jays' search for inexpensive ways to improve their roster this offseason has included scouring the waiver wire for possible additions.

Miffed Torre fans shut out of bookstore … It was worse than Mariano Rivera blowing a save, or watching Kyle Farnsworth get the ball with a four-run lead.  —  Disgruntled Yankee fans gave Borders bookstore a Bronx cheer after waiting in line for more than three hours Wednesday afternoon …

Teammate: Dodgers can win with or without Manny Ramirez  —  LOS ANGELES — Russell Martin says he and his Los Angeles Dodgers teammates want Manny Ramirez [stats] to return, but the slugger “isn't necessarily the difference between us winning or losing.”  —  Ramirez has rejected three offers …

Major League Snitch  —  Unmasked: How a white-collar Baltimore swindler turned secret FBI informant and ignited a Major League Baseball steroid scandal  —  Even a casual sports fan is by now aware of the key personalities and events of Major League Baseball's ongoing steroid scandal …

Bonds Documents  —  For those interested — especially fellow shysters with a PACER login and password — here's the mother lode of US v. Barry Bonds documents, pleadings, etc.  I haven't had a chance to really go over them in any detail, but my cursory review of it confirms what has been obvious …

2009 World Series Odds  —  With pitchers and catches set to report soon to Spring Training, it's once again time to check out the updated 2009 MLB World Series odds to win.  —  Bet MLB Future Odds  —  Oddsmakers from online sportsbook Sportsbook.com have made the New York Yankees 5/2 favorites to win the 2009 World Series.

Don't expect Sheets  —  Two weeks ago, free agent pitcher Ben Sheets and his agent, Casey Close, had dinner with the Rangers.  Rangers owner Tom Hicks was at the dinner, which suggested things were getting serious.  —  Two weeks later, Sheets remains unsigned.  —  All signs points to him not being with the Rangers in 2008.

The Yaz family craft  —  Sox legend boosts grandson's budding baseball career  —  Carl and Mike Yastrzemski were all business in North Andover.  (Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff)  —  NORTH ANDOVER - When Carl Yastrzemski slips quietly through a back door of DB's Baseball and Softball Instructional Academy, the baseballs stop bouncing.

Epstein interview  —  Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein offered some candid insights, particularly concerning the club's ill-fated pursuit of Mark Teixeira and his admiration for John Smoltz, during an interview this afternoon on sports radio WEEI's “Dale and Holley” show.

Why Roger Clemens Isn't Barry Bonds  —  No matter what the outcome of the tests now being conducted on the Roger Clemens-Brian McNamee syringes and no matter what the outcome of the anti-defamation suits Clemens and McNamee have filed against each other and no matter whether the government finds grounds …

Sandy Koufax among Madoff clients who lost money  —  NEW YORK (AP) — Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax, a high school baseball teammate and friend of New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon, was among the clients who lost money investing with Bernard Madoff, according to a court filing released Wednesday night.

With Costas gone, HBO may eye Buck  —  After losing Bob Costas to the MLB Network, no one at HBO Sports looked to pass the buck.  Instead HBO may be looking to acquire one - Joe Buck, that is.  —  The history of HBO Sports provides evidence its boss, Ross Greenburg, likes to hire high profile network talent.

Kotsay expected out at least until May after back surgery  —  With the news coming today that Mark Kotsay had back surgery on Jan. 29 to remove a displaced disc fragment, the decision by the Red Sox to sign Brad Wilkerson (pending a physical) makes more sense.

Designing the perfect keeper league  —  In trying to set up the first keeper league I've ever been a part of, I'm a little daunted by the challenges it presents.  I've tried to stick to the most common settings out there (standard BA, R, HR, RBI, SB, W, SV, K, ERA, WHIP, $260 per team) …

How to measure a player's value (Part 3)  —  I have defined what I mean by player value and why I believe that in parts One and Two.  Now it's time to get down to brass tacks, to apply principles to practice and see how they look in action.  —  This is not the most in-depth or accurate method of calculating a player's value.