Deal struck to sell Stadium memorabilia  —  Demolition of old Yankees ballpark reportedly to begin in April  —  Seats, foul poles, dugouts, urinals and numerous other items from the old Yankee Stadium will be sold to fans as part of a $10 million deal between the Yankees and New York City, the New York Post reported on Wednesday.

Pittsburgh Pirates prospect Jose Tabata's wife suspect in baby kidnap  —  PLANT CITY, Fla. — A 2-month-old is back in the arms of her parents and the wife of a top Pittsburgh Pirates minor league prospect is suspected of taking the infant from a health clinic outside Tampa, authorities said Tuesday.

Willis in control, throws strikes  —  LAKELAND, Fla. — As he went to the mound at 10 o'clock Tuesday morning, Tigers left-hander Dontrelle Willis did so bolstered by encouragement from a distinguished neighbor.  —  The Tigers' spring base isn't far from the Atlanta Braves' camp …

Terrible news  —  I want to let all of THT's readers know that one of our most prolific writers and favorite people, John Brattain, just passed away.  —  Many of us got to know John through the Baseball Think Factory, where his good humor was always on display.

Strasburg is on the all-time fastest track  —  Buzz up!  —  SAN DIEGO - The radar gun blinks wildly.  It's not used to this.  No one makes it strain to read out a third digit.  It looks like binary code, not the speed of a pitch from a 20-year-old kid: 101.

Dodgers' Manny Ramirez prefers running to trotting  —  Ramirez hits his first home run of the spring, but he's more encouraged about being able to run the bases full speed on a fly out.  His hamstring feels fine, he says.  —  Reporting from Phoenix — Manny Ramirez belted his first home run …

Whatever you do, don't hit a grand slam  —  Jesus Montero belted a grand slam against the Pirates on March 14 and was reassigned to the minor-league camp the next day.  —  Austin Jackson belted a grand slam today and guess what happened?  He was reassigned to the minor-league camp as well.

Mike Piazza: The Back Acne Was The Least Of It  —  This is a new weekly column from Leitch.  It has words, and pictures.  It's called Ten Humans Of The Week.  It might or might not work.  But here it is.  —  There has been a lot of talk this week about Mike Piazza, from Murray …

Freddy Garcia assigned to minor-league camp  —  Mets assistant GM John Ricco just informed us that Freddy Garcia, who was fighting a losing battle with Livan Hernandez in the competition for the No. 5 starter role, has accepted an assignment to minor-league camp.

For Mets Fans, a Menu Beyond Peanuts and Cracker Jack  —  Look for a fastball from the folks who brought you foie gras custard with quince chutney at Gramercy Tavern and capellini with flaked cod at Union Square Cafe: Mets food.  —  The long-suffering fans who smuggled picnics into Shea Stadium …

Cardinals will start season without naming closer  —  The Cardinals have not yet designated a closer, but Jason Motte leads all contenders.  He has earned a save in four of his past five appearances this spring.  (Chris Lee/P-D)  —  ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH

Cubs reduce spring roster to 37 players  —  The Chicago Cubs today sent five players to minor league camp, reducing their spring roster from 42 to 37 players.  —  Additionally, the club outrighted outfielder Richie Robnett to Triple-A Iowa.  Chicago's 40-man roster now stands at 38 players.

Schilling in total control until the end  —  CLEARWATER, Fla. - Gene Michael is an adviser to Yankees miniboss Hank Steinbrenner these days.  When Curt Schilling was emerging as one of the great control freaks - on and off the mound - “Stick” was the Yankees' general manager.