Sox acquire Alex Gonzalez  —  The Red Sox, who have had a revolving at shortstop in recent seasons, reacquired a familiar face this afternoon in attempt to help solve their ongoing problem.  —  Alex Gonzalez, who was spectacular with the glove but so-so at the plate during 2006 …

3 UP: JOBA'S ROLES, JOBA'S RULES AND MATSUI  —  Yes, I am on Twitter.  —  1. In today's Post I wrote about why I believe it is wise to limit Joba Chamberlain's innings.  Here is something else to consider: Let's say in late July 2007, the Yankees had done what was the popular thing and traded …

21-year-old charged in beer-tossing incident at Wrigley Field  —  Bartlett man charged with tossing beer at outfielder from Wrigley bleachers  —  A Bartlett man has been charged with two misdemeanors after a daylong search for the Cubs fan who threw beer on a Philadelphia Phillies outfielder during Wednesday night's game.

The Dan Murphy Myth  —  Last year, a determined and serious young man leapfrogged over AAA into the big leagues and became a fan favorite for his hustle, energy, and line-drive bat.  Perhaps most importantly, Danny Murphy was “home-grown” — a ballplayer drafted by the Mets and developed in their farm system.

Prospectus Roundtable: The Problem with Young Pitchers Is... by Baseball Prospectus  —  Remember when Mark Prior was on his way to Cooperstown?  Or when Edwin Jackson was a bust?  Every year, it seems like some young hurler is defying our expectations, yet we are constantly forgetting …

Mets lift Parnell's pitch limit  —  Jerry Manuel capped Bobby Parnell's first major-league start at 68 pitches last weekend in San Diego because the rookie had been working in relief since getting promoted last September.  —  Parnell managed to record only seven outs against the Padres …

Rockies manager credits Bucs' front office  —  DENVER - Rockies manager Jim Tracy looks at the Pirates dugout and sees only a handful of players he recognizes.  —  It hasn't been a full two years since Tracy was fired as the Pirates manager after two in a long run of losing seasons.

Source: Lerner meets with Strasburg  —  Publicly, neither the Washington Nationals nor Stephen Strasburgs camp having been saying much about contract negotiations for the No. 1 overall pick, which will end with or without a deal at midnight on Tuesday.  But that doesnt mean things arent heating up behind the scenes.

Duquette on Statistical Analysis & Decision Making  —  Readers of the site know about some of the spirited debate going on here regarding statistical analysis.  I questioned our good friends at Amazin Avenue, who tend to look at the game from a very numbers centric perspective.

Players not only ones moving in trades  —  Families forced to make big adjustments after Deadline deals  —  Jarrod Washburn had been hearing the whispers for over a year, and two weeks ago they finally turned into a scream.  —  After revitalizing his career at the age of 34 with a 2009 season …

WAR and WSAB  —  Long-time readers of the Hardball Times may know that I've done a lot of work with Win Shares, creating Win Shares Above Bench and ranking the all-time greats.  —  Wins Above Replacement, or WAR, is newest win-based stat of choice (I'm still a fan of WPA, too).

When the moment is right ...  I wasn't entirely sure about posting the following ... because I don't know what it is.  This is not an essay.  It's not a complete thought.  It's not something I have spent a lot of time considering.  It's merely a stream of consciousness about ... something I was spurred to start writing.

New York Mets Top 20 PRE-SEASON Prospects in Review  —  More photos » by Kathy Willens - AP  —  New York Mets' outfielder Fernando Martinez (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)  —  New York Mets Top 20 PRE-SEASON Prospects in Review  —  This list was originally published December 20, 2008.