Infielder Hudson signs with Dodgers  —  All-Star second baseman costs team first-round Draft pick  —  PHOENIX — Free agents are on sale, and the Dodgers picked one up on the cheap Friday when they agreed with second baseman Orlando Hudson on a one-year contract, baseball sources confirmed.

A-Rod's pal, the tainted trainer: Steroid-linked friend is banned by every MLB team  —  Embattled Yankee Alex Rodriguez has had a long relationship with a steroid-linked trainer who's been banned from major league clubhouses, four independent sources told the Daily News.

Several Yanks pick camp over Classic  —  Pitchers Ramirez, Veras latest to decline participation in tournament  —  TAMPA, Fla. — The Yankees have nine members of their 40-man roster listed as provisional participants for the World Baseball Classic, but numerous players are deciding to remain in camp instead and compete for jobs.

Zimmerman Avoids Arbitration, Signs One-Year Deal  —  The contract Washington Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman signed late last night didn't satisfy the ultimate goal — a long-term deal — but at least it erased the most immediate fear.  Because of the one-year, $3.325 million agreement …

Glavine, Braves agree to deal  —  Veteran lefty will have chance to earn up to $4.5 million in 2009  —  LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Confident that his left arm is as strong as it's been in nearly six years, Tom Glavine has gained the opportunity to prove he can still be a valuable member of the Braves rotation.

Rangers to sign right-hander Benson  —  Minor League deal with spring invite likely done this weekend  —  SURPRISE, Ariz. — The Rangers are expected to sign pitcher Kris Benson to a Minor League contract with an invitation to Spring Training, possibly this weekend.

Using Z-Scores to Rank Pitchers  —  If you're not a stathead, fantasy geek, or a baseball nerd, then you might want to skip ahead to the rankings of pitchers in the middle and at the bottom of this article.  Or you just may want to skip this article altogether and check out Deadspin …

The color of clutch  —  I hope this is the last time I need to write an article devoted to clutch hitting.  —  The data  —  There have been many attempts to find evidence of clutch hitting.  All of these attempts focus on the same basic principle: compare a player's performance …

Bowden May Wind Up Paying Again  —  The bucks stop on Jim Bowden's desk.  All 1.4 million of them.  —  When that bill comes due, will the Nationals' general manager pay with his job?  —  For the moment, Bowden appears to have been the primary sucker in one of the most embarrassing scams ever used to defraud a baseball team.

Assets of Damon, Nady frozen in scheme fallout … TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Yankees outfielders Johnny Damon and Xavier Nady are among the investors whose accounts were caught in a freeze by the government of a company affiliated with Robert Allen Stanford.  —  The pair did not invest directly …