Astros close to signing Pedro  —  The Astros are on the verge of signing a potential Hall of Famer as a free agent for the second team in a week as baseball sources indicated Tuesday night that they are close to an agreement with right-hander Pedro Martinez.

Royals ink Ponson to Minors deal  —  Righty starred for Netherlands in Cinderella Classic bid  —  SURPRISE, Ariz. — Sidney Ponson, who pitched for the amazing Netherlands team in the World Baseball Classic, was signed Tuesday by the Royals to a Minor League contract.

Hamels a ‘long shot’ for Opening Day  —  MRI turns up no damage to left elbow, ace to throw Thursday  —  CLEARWATER, Fla. — The Phillies said Tuesday that Cole Hamels has no structural damage to his left elbow.  —  That, they said, is the good news.  —  But it also appears he is a long shot …

Mets' Murphy is true student of the game  —  PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. - The green-covered CVS-brand notebook sits deep in Daniel Murphy's locker at the Mets' spring training site, Tradition Field.  —  The notebook has been places, though.  And like the Mets' 23-year-old leftfielder, it seems to be going places, too.

Littleton in; Morlan out  —  By Tom Haudricourt of the Journal Sentinel  —  The bid of Rule 5 draft pick Eduardo Morlan to make the Brewers' bullpen has failed, so they're going to give someone else a shot.  —  The Brewers have claimed right-hander Wes Littleton on waivers from Boston …

Byrd's big spring may push Andruw out  —  Rangers weigh options as outfielders head in different directions  —  SURPRISE, Ariz. — A significant moment occurred in the third inning of the Rangers' 11-5 victory over the Indians on Tuesday.  —  Marlon Byrd went from first to third on David Murphy's weak single to left-center.

Lugo has surgery, Pedroia's status . . .  FORT MYERS, Fla. — Julio Lugo underwent a successful right knee arthroscopy this morning in Boston.  Doctors repaired a torn meniscus, which is what they expected to find.  Lugo will miss 3-4 weeks, almost certainly sidelining him for Opening Day April 6, which is 20 days away.

Perez making most of stars' absence  —  Veteran outfielder raps four hits in victory over Cardinals  —  LAKELAND, Fla. — Timo Perez is not a complicated player.  He's a left-handed line-drive hitter who will step to the plate swinging.  He won't strike out a lot, but he won't draw an abundance of walks, either.

Top 200 Prospect List  —  Check out the evolution of our prospect thinking.  Revisit our 2008 Top 150 and 2007 Top 100.

Zambrano loves the Cubs, but he's also a Sox fan  —  MESA, Ariz. — It's hard to believe, but Carlos Zambrano has moved to the top of the Cubs' longevity list.  At 27, he is the team's elder statesman, moving into the suite formerly occupied by Kerry Wood.  —  Zambrano debuted with the Cubs on Aug. 20, 2001.

A's catcher Powell set for backup role  —  The A's selected two catchers early in the 2004 draft, Kurt Suzuki with the 67th overall pick and Landon Powell with the 24th.  —  While injuries slowed Powell, Suzuki zoomed to the majors and, by July 2007, emerged as Oakland's No. 1 catcher.

Offseason In Review: Cincinnati Reds  —  By Tim Dierkes [March 17 at 11:21am CST]  —  Next up in our Offseason In Review series, the Reds.  Here's what we wrote about them on September 26th.  Changes for 2009:  —  Additions: Ramon Hernandez, Willy Taveras, Arthur Rhodes, Jonny Gomes …

Prospect Interview Series: Spring Training Edition  —  I recently returned from a week out in Surprise and was fortunate enough to speak with several of the prospects participating in major league camp.  All of the interviews are brief and most of them consist of similar questions.

Hanley scratched against Nats  —  All-Star shortstop takes breather to rest sore right shoulder  —  JUPITER, Fla. — Marlins shortstop Hanley Ramirez was nursing a sore right shoulder, and right fielder Cody Ross was suffering tightness in his left calf on Monday.  Both were scratched from the lineup against the Nationals.