3 UP: GARCIA, MANUEL, CHURCH  —  1. There is an assumption that Freddy Garcia is on track to be the No. 5 starter with the Mets.  But not so fast.  The early read in camp is that Garcia is still tight and not fully unleashing his surgically repaired right arm yet.

School's out for the Yankees  —  Joe Girardi just called off the workout.  The entire team and coaching staff will instead head to a local pool hall for a tournament and lunch.  —  With games starting Wednesday, Girardi decided to give his team a break and build some chemistry at the same time.

Feds expanding probe of GM Bowden … A federal investigation into the skimming of signing bonuses given to baseball prospects from Latin America is looking at Washington Nationals general manager Jim Bowden as far back as 1994, when he was GM of the Cincinnati Reds, according to a baseball executive familiar with the investigation.

Left-hander did not report to Spring Training over contract issue  —  VIERA, Fla. — The Nationals released left-hander Odalis Perez on Monday morning because of his failure to report to Spring Training.  —  Perez signed a Minor League deal with the Nationals on Feb. 5.

Coke to pitch out of the bullpen  —  I stopped Joe Girardi in the clubhouse today as I wanted to get some clarification on how they plan to use Phil Coke.  —  The verdict is ... reliever.  —  “He's a guy we see being able to pitch multiple innings out of the bullpen.

Future Shock  —  Yankees Top 11 Prospects  —  Five-Star Prospects  —  Three-Star Prospects  —  Just Missed: Brad Suttle, 3B; Kelvin De Leon, RF; Wilkins De La Rosa, LHP  —  Ranking Challenges: It's a very tough system to rank from top to bottom.  Montero comes with positional questions …

Mulder could be back with A's  —  Could Mark Mulder be one of several potential additions the A's make before the end of the spring?  —  After several years of shoulder injuries, the former A's starter is pitching in Arizona.  And after many sessions with a flexibility expert …

The truth strikes out  —  The next great baseball moment probably will come late in the 2013 season, when Alex Rodriguez hits home run No. 763 and is greeted at home plate, one cheater to another, by Barry Bonds.  —  Greater still would be if that moment occurs in Arlington.

An expert diamond cutter  —  Youkilis gets in some time at third  —  FORT MYERS, Fla. - The Youk-fu.  Seriously?  —  OK, so the new look Kevin Youkilis was sporting yesterday for picture day might not exactly catch on with the Hollywood types, as he suggested, but then again, the facial hair might not be there for long.

Braves sign Garret Anderson to one-year deal  —  Lake Buena Vista, Fla. — The Braves have finally added a veteran bat to their outfield, left-handed slugger Garret Anderson.  —  The team finalized a one-year contract worth about $2.5 million with the free agent on Sunday, according to a person familiar with negotiations.

Day 9: Andy LaRoche ready for games later this week?  —  BRADENTON, Fla. — He was dressed and raring to go today, taking grounders with infield coach Perry Hill in the morning, taking some swings in the batting cages, running a bit after the rest of the Pirates in practice-opening conditioning.