Soriano ‘happy to be close to greatest closer’  —  Yankees new setup man excited to team with legendary Rivera  —  NEW YORK — The Yankees put the finishing touches on creating one of the game's top late-inning relief combinations, introducing right-hander Rafael Soriano during a news conference Wednesday at Yankee Stadium.

Milton Bradley arrested on felony charge for allegedly making a threat  —  UPDATE: According to Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times, Bradley was arrested at home at around 10:40 a.m for making a threat against an unidentified female.  He was later released on $50,000 bail.

Meeting Up and Hanging Out with Bert  —  Make no mistake about it, I've had a fun-tastic two weeks.  It all started with the phone call from Bert Blyleven on Wednesday, January 5 when he informed me 30 minutes prior to the actual announcement that he had been elected to the Hall of Fame.

Former Blue Jays skipper Hartsfield dies  —  Roy Hartsfield, the first manager of the Toronto Blue Jays, passed away on Saturday at his daughter's Atlanta-area home.  He was 85.  —  Hartsfield's death was the result of complications from liver cancer, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, which first reported the news.

Papelbon, Ellsbury get one-year deals  —  The Red Sox have been successful in locking up their better young players in recent years, coming to terms on long-term contracts with Jon Lester, Dustin Pedroia, and Kevin Youkilis.  —  Closer Jonathan Papelbon was a determined loner in that regard …

Matt Anderson's life after octopus story  —  Reliever ready to move from legend of how his career was halted and make comeback  —  PHILADELPHIA — Before you learn anything about Matt Anderson's hopes, dreams or chances of authoring the comeback of the baseball summer with the 2011 Philadelphia Phillies …

Espinosa No. 5 among top second base prospects  —  Mariners' Ackley leads a diverse group at the position … The term “natural second baseman” doesn't come up very often.  It's not that it never happens, but it's more than common to see any list of second-base prospects consist of shortstops …

Mother of Chicago Cubs outfielder Alfonso Soriano dies suddenly  —  ORLANDO — The mother of Chicago Cubs outfielder Alfonso Soriano, Andrea Soriano, died on Tuesday night in San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic, after suffering what appears to be a heart attack, the player told ESPNdeportes.com.

Sources: Pavano “seriously considered” Yankees  —  Yankees GM Brian Cashman told reporters Wednesday that he had “several discussions” with the agent for free-agent right-hander Carl Pavano, who endured four trying seasons in New York from 2005 to '08.  —  Pavano, in turn …

A's Designate Steve Tolleson For Assignment  —  The A's designated infielder Steve Tolleson for assignment to make room for Brian Fuentes on the 40-man roster, the team announced.  —  Tolleson made his major league debut last year, batting .286/.340/.408 in 53 plate appearances.

Polo Grounds, and Its Former Tenants, Emerge From the Shadows  —  When a ballpark dies, and its concrete and steel are smashed to bits, it survives in memories: attending a first game there; smelling the mix of grass, hot dogs and beer; rising with thousands of others to watch a home run take flight; and catching a foul ball (finally!).

Yankees' Curtis Granderson promotes baseball in New Zealand as MLB International Ambassador  —  Curtis Granderson has eaten duck brain in China - “It had the consistency of a lima bean and really didn't have much flavor,” he says - and once felt like his taste buds were seared when he sampled …

The Retirement of Meche  —  From the start, I thought the Kansas City Royals got a bad rap when they gave Gil Meche a five-year, $55 million contract.  That was before the 2007 season, and up to that point Meche's career numbers were 55-44 with an unimpressive 4.65 ERA, an equally unimpressive 96 ERA+ …

Blanton likely to stay in Philly rotation  —  Joe Blanton is likely to round out the powerhouse Philadelphia Phillies pitching rotation.  —  Ken Rosenthal has been the senior baseball writer for FOXSports.com since August 2005.  He appears weekly on MLB on FOX.  Follow him on Twitter.