Top News:
Mike DiGiovanna / LA Times Sports Blog:
Angels owner explains refusal to meet Crawford's asking price; team makes ‘significant’ offer to Beltre — The Angels never made a formal contract offer to outfielder Carl Crawford, and owner Arte Moreno said Friday that, contrary to previous reports, he was not willing to match the seven-year …
Discussion:
Full Count, HardballTalk, Fanhouse MLB Blog, Boston Globe, MLB Rumors and Halos Heaven
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Mike Bauman / MLB.com:
Jenks makes Red Sox a lot more formidable — Infield, outfield, bullpen — the winter solstice has not yet arrived, but the Boston Red Sox have already made impact additions in three areas. — The additions of first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and outfielder Carl Crawford were indisputably positive …
NY Daily News:
Mariano Rivera may call Andy Pettitte soon to convince him to return …
Mariano Rivera may call Andy Pettitte soon to convince him to return …
Discussion:
Sliding Into Home
Peter Abraham / Boston Globe:
Sox add Jenks to the mix
Sox add Jenks to the mix
Discussion:
sox1fan.com, Chicago Breaking Sports, The Big Lead and SawxBlog
Jon Paul Morosi / Fox Sports:
Sources: Greinke asks Royals for trade — Zack Greinke wants to be traded, and the Kansas City Royals intend to grant his wish. — Greinke fired his agent on Friday, the clearest indication yet of the ace right-hander's desire to be sent to another club.
Discussion:
Confessions of a She-Fan, MLB Rumors, HardballTalk, Lone Star Ball, Federal Baseball, JSOnline and Chicago Breaking Sports
Zach Links / MLB Rumors:
Padres Acquire Jason Bartlett — The Padres have acquired Jason Bartlett from the Rays, tweets Marty Caswell of XX1090 Sports Radio. San Diego will also receive a player to be named later from Tampa Bay in exchange for Brandon Gomes, Adam Russell, Cesar Ramos, and Cole Figueroa.
Discussion:
HardballTalk
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Corey Brock / MLB.com:
Near deal with Hudson, Padres add Bartlett — San Diego completes deal with Tampa Bay for shortstop — SAN DIEGO — In one fell swoop on Friday, the Padres may have addressed two of their biggest needs of the offseason — finding a starting shortstop and second baseman.
Matthew Cerrone / MetsBlog.com:
Orlando Hudson signs with Padres — The Padres have signed free-agent 2B Orlando Hudson to a two-year, $11.5 million deal, according to Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com. — There is not much of a market for Hudson, according to ESPN.com. — The Mets are not interested, at least as far as I can tell.
Discussion:
Gaslamp Ball, MLB Rumors and Yahoo! Sports
Matt Antonelli / The Official Blog of Matt Antonelli:
THE DECISION... Hey guys! The weeks seem to be flying by the last few months. I really can't believe Christmas is only a week away. I still haven't gone shopping yet, but that isn't anything new. When it comes to holiday shopping I rank towards the top of the list of procrastinators.
Discussion:
NATIONALS NEWS NETWORK and Federal Baseball
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Pete Kerzel / The Goessling Game:
2B Antonelli blogs that he's joining Nationals — You've got to love the Internet revolution. How else would we know when players decide on a new team? — Second baseman Matt Antonelli chose his personal blog to deliver the news this afternoon that he's decided to accept a contract offer from the Nationals.
Discussion:
MLB Rumors
Matt Eddy / Baseball America:
Scouting reports for the Top 10 Prospects (How to subscribe) — Omar Minaya seemingly could do no wrong in the early part of his tenure as Mets general manager. He lured premium free agents Carlos Beltran, Pedro Martinez and Billy Wagner to Queens with rich contract offers.
Discussion:
Amazin' Avenue, Patrick Flood, Mets Merized Online, MetsBlog.com, New Jersey Online and MetsMinorLeagueBlog.com
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Mike Puma / New York Post:
Mets armed for trade
Sports Illustrated:
Two best remaining targets on the market … This offseason has been, for the most part, a mystery. The Carl Crawford signing with the Red Sox was slightly surprising in that most folks had him pegged for the Angels, the Jayson Werth deal with the Nationals was very surprising in that nobody …
Discussion:
HardballTalk and Texas Rangers
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Ben Nicholson-Smith / MLB Rumors:
Astros To Sign Bill Hall — The Astros have agreed to sign Bill Hall to a one-year deal that includes a mutual option for 2012, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). The AP pegs the guarantee at $3.25MM. The agreement is pending a physical.
Bill Ladson / MLB.com:
Nationals targeting Lee to fill first-base void — NEW YORK — The Nationals are “actively” pursuing free-agent first baseman Derrek Lee, according to a baseball source, while another indicated that Lee is the club's top target to play the position. The Nationals are one of several clubs interested in Lee's services.
Discussion:
HardballTalk and MLB Rumors
JonPaulMorosi / mlbbuzz:
Sources: Tigers looking at Penny, other veteran starters — The Detroit Tigers' everyday lineup looks complete, now that they have agreed to a one-year contract with Magglio Ordoñez. — But they are still trying to upgrade their starting rotation, major-league sources told FOXSports.com.
Discussion:
MLB Rumors and HardballTalk
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Ben Nicholson-Smith / MLB Rumors:
Tigers To Re-Sign Magglio Ordonez
Tigers To Re-Sign Magglio Ordonez
Discussion:
Bless You Boys, Tiger Tales, HardballTalk and Fanhouse MLB Blog
Jim Armstrong / All Things Rockies:
Francis' decision expected soon — I figured it would be today. If not today, then early next week. By then, Jeff Francis figures to be a Rockie or a former Rockie. — Francis has responded to a few texts this offseason, but hasn't commented on his contractual situation.
Discussion:
MLB Rumors
Adam Kilgore / Nationals Journal:
Mike Rizzo and Josh Willingham on the trade — Let's do this quick, bullet-point style. Here are highlights from General Manager Mike Rizzo, who just completed a teleconference with reporters, and Josh Willingham, who spoke with the Post in a brief phone conversation, on the trade that sent Willingham to the Oakland A's:
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Enrique Rojas / MLB:
Edgar Renteria dislikes Giants' $1M offer — ORLANDO — Edgar Renteria understands the best part of his major league career is over and baseball is a business, but he still hoped for better treatment from the San Francisco Giants after helping the team to the World Series in October.
Discussion:
The Mighty Quinn Media Machine, Fanhouse MLB Blog, HardballTalk and MLB Rumors
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Mark Polishuk / MLB Rumors:
Renteria: Giants' Offer Showed “A Lack Of Respect”
Renteria: Giants' Offer Showed “A Lack Of Respect”
Discussion:
SFGate, McCovey Chronicles, The Fish Pond and Bugs & Cranks