Spring Game 13: Blue Jays at Yankees (includes A-Rod surgery update)  —  YANKEES  —  Pitching today: Andy Pettitte followed by Ian Kennedy, Dan Giese, Dave Robertson, Jose Veras and Jon Albaladejo.  —  BLUE JAYS  —  Adams LF  —  Hill 2B  —  Lind DH  —  Overbay 1B  —  Lane CF  —  Snider RF

A-Rod A-OK after successful surgery … Alex Rodriguez underwent successful hip repair surgery Monday at a Colorado clinic.  —  The 80-minute procedure was performed by Dr. Marc Philippon, a specialist known as the “hip doctor to the stars.”  —  “Alex is doing very well,” Philippon said.

Pedro to Mets: Call me  —  CAROLINA, Puerto Rico - Pedro Martinez has a message for Mets general manager Omar Minaya: If you want a future Hall of Famer as your fifth starter this season, give me a call.  —  Martinez - the free-agent pitcher who sparkled in three scoreless innings of relief …

Lester extension makes good business sense  —  One can make the case that of all the left-handed pitchers younger than 26 years old, Cole Hamels and Jon Lester would have the most value on the open market.  Each is 25.  Each has pitched World Series-clinching games.

Chavez shut down with sore shoulder  —  Former Gold Glover was scheduled to play in field on Monday  —  PHOENIX — The on-again, off-again comeback by Oakland's Eric Chavez hit another snag on Monday, as he was scratched from his expected spring fielding debut at third base because of soreness …

Chipper Jones leaves game with mild oblique strain  —  TORONTO (AP) — United States third baseman Chipper Jones left Sunday night's game against Venezuela after five innings with a mild oblique strain and will be evaluated again Monday.  —  Jones was injured swinging at a pitch in the fifth inning …

Details on Cabrera, Garciaparra contracts with Oakland  —  The Oakland A's are nothing if not contrarian.  At a time when small market teams are trimming their budgets, Oakland has opened its wallet.  The A's will have around a $60 million payroll — still well below the Rockies' $73 million 00 …

Team USA advances behind big sixth  —  Iannetta, Pedroia, Youkilis deliver key hits vs. Venezuela's 'pen  —  TORONTO — For the first five innings on Sunday, Team USA seemed destined for its second nail-biter in as many nights in the World Baseball Classic.

JETER: YANKEES WILL GET BY  —  TORONTO - Hip, hip, hooray!  Six to nine weeks without Alex Rodriguez doesn't sound so bad to Derek Jeter.  —  “It's good, better than the other story I heard that he was going to miss a longer time,” Jeter said last night before Team USA faced Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic.

Minor League Transactions  —  February 28 through March 7  —  Atlanta Braves  —  Placed on restricted list: OF Rashod Henry  —  Outrighted to Triple-A: RHP Anthony Lerew  —  The Nationals released Perez during spring training last year and the 29-year-old minor league veteran failed to latch on with another affiliated club.

Report: Manny Ramirez won't get all his money till 2013  —  NEW YORK — Manny Ramirez's money from his new $45 million, two-year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers won't be fully paid until June 2013, according to contract details obtained Monday by The Associated Press.  —  Ramirez

Twins concerned by Mauer's lingering back pain … PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. (AP) — Minnesota Twins catcher Joe Mauer has been hampered by back pain, hurting his rehab from offseason kidney surgery.  —  Mauer, the reigning American League batting champion, will undergo a magnetic resonance arthogram Tuesday.

Gardner vs. Gathright  —  Last week longtime RAB reader and commenter whozat shot me an email asking me if there was any reason to expect Brett Gardner to develop into a better Major League player than Joey Gathright.  The comparison between the two players obviously makes sense since they're …

Is Strasburg the best prospect ever?  —  So just how good is Stephen Strasburg, the San Diego State right-hander who is regarded as the No. 1 talent in this year's draft?  —  “The best I've ever seen,” says a longtime scout.  “And it's not even close.”  —  C'mon. Better than Mark Prior?

JOKE JOCK JUST DOIN' WHAT HE'S PAID TO DO  —  CONTINUED  —  Selected for stardom by WFAN because he was a fully committed professional lowlife with no other discernible skill - he once recited a vulgar poem mocking those afflicted with breast cancer - Sid Rosenberg, after FAN finally …

Team Offense, New York Yankees  —  The series on team offense continues with the New York Yankees.  I plug the probable lineup from CBSSportsLine into the Lineup Analysis Tool, and fill in the numbers with Marcel the Monkey projections.  The results:  — Best lineup: 5.72 runs per game

Pettitte: Pressure on pitchers  —  Andy Pettitte says with Alex Rodriguez absent for the start of this season, the pressure to perform falls to the Yankees starting pitchers.  —  “I feel like this team is going to win if we pitch well, whether Alex is here or not, to tell you the truth,” the left-hander said.