Top News:
Aaron Gleeman / HardballTalk:
Blue Jays trade just-acquired Mike Napoli to the Rangers for Frank Francisco — Just days after acquiring catcher Mike Napoli from the Angels as part of the Vernon Wells trade/contract dump the Blue Jays have traded him to the Rangers for reliever Frank Francisco.
Discussion:
baseballmusings.com, MLB Daily Dish and Bluebird Banter
RELATED:
Jon Paul Morosi / Fox Sports:
No multi-year offer for Bautista yet — The Toronto Blue Jays have yet to offer Jose Bautista a multiyear contract extension this offseason, the slugger's agent told FOXSports.com. — “Jose is interested in exploring it, but they have not made any multiyear proposals,” the agent, Bean Stringfellow, said in a telephone interview.
Discussion:
Boston Globe, Yahoo! Sports and HardballTalk
Fox Sports:
Young no longer a fit for Rangers — 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. — The Texas Rangers still want to trade Michael Young. — That's an opinion, not a fact — or, at least, not a fact I can prove.
Ben Nicholson-Smith / MLB Rumors:
Blue Jays, Rangers Swap Napoli, Francisco — Hopefully Mike Napoli's suitcase is still packed. Just four days after acquiring the catcher/first baseman from the Angels, the Blue Jays have sent him back to the AL West. Napoli is heading to the Rangers for Frank Francisco and cash, the teams announced.
Discussion:
Getting Blanked, Lone Star Ball, Drunk Jays Fans and Bluebird Banter
ESPN:
If New York Yankees' Derek Jeter ever leaves SS, Brian Cashman thinks CF fits — If 36-year-old Derek Jeter doesn't last at shortstop for the length of his new four-year contract, New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman thinks Jeter is best suited for a switch to center field.
Discussion:
HardballTalk, lenNY's Yankees, The LoHud Yankees Blog and NESN.com
RELATED:
Craig Calcaterra / HardballTalk:
Brian Cashman is dropping some moderate-sized bombs this morning — espnW's Amanda Rykoff is at WFAN's Breakfast with a Champion event in New York this morning, and Yankees GM Brian Cashman is talking to the media. She's live-tweeting it, and it you can check out her feed …
David Brown / Yahoo! Sports:
Brian Cashman predicts Derek Jeter will soon move to outfield
Discussion:
Pinstriped Bible …, Subway Squawkers, YFSF, New Jersey Online and It's About The Money
Brian Costello / New York Post:
Yankees GM says if Jeter moves, it'll be to center field
Discussion:
SBNation.com, USA Today, Bronx Baseball Daily and BBTF's Baseball Primer …
Jeff Passan / ThePostGame:
Sabermetrician In Exile — In the middle of the night, when his mind was racing again, Voros McCracken decided to share his discovery with the world. Before the celebrity and the job and the diagnosis and the drugs and the wristwatch, he had the idea. Had he realized it would forever change …
Discussion:
River Avenue Blues, HardballTalk, Ducksnorts, ESPN, Getting Blanked and Where Have You Gone …
Phil Wood:
After roster move, are Nats talking with Indians? — The Nationals have designated pitcher Shairon Martis for assignment to open a roster spot for Jerry Hairston Jr. The next Nat to be handed that bit of news will most likely be Alberto Gonzalez, who has competition for the backup infield gig …
Discussion:
MLB Rumors, Federal Baseball, Halos Heaven, HardballTalk and The Goessling Game
RELATED:
Greg Johns / MLB.com:
Mariners beef up 'pen with Minors deal for Ray — SEATTLE — Looking to add some experienced depth to their bullpen competition, the Mariners signed former Orioles closer Chris Ray as a Minor League free agent Tuesday with an invitation to Major League Spring Training.
Discussion:
Yahoo! Sports and Lookout Landing
Enrique Rojas / MLB:
Houston Astros, starting pitcher Wandy Rodriguez agree to 3-year, $34 million deal — ORLANDO — Starting pitcher Wandy Rodriguez agreed to a three-year contract for $34 million with the Houston Astros to avoid salary arbitration, the team announced Tuesday.
Discussion:
baseballmusings.com, MLB Rumors and Yahoo! Sports
Moshe Mandel / TYU:
YES Censors Affiliated Blogs Over Rafael Soriano Criticism? — When news of Rafael Soriano's signing filtered onto Twitter on the evening of January 13th, many Yankees fans were aghast at the length of the deal and the fact that the club had sacrificed a draft pick to obtain an 8th inning man.
Discussion:
HardballTalk and Sliding Into Home
Larry Stone / Seattle Times:
Zduriencik on Milton Bradley: “We're planning on him coming into spring training and competing for a job” — I made a followup call to Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik to ask him about his comment to Dave “Softy” Mahler today on KJR-AM 950 about Milton Bradley.
Discussion:
HardballTalk and Fanhouse MLB Blog
Bailey Stephens / MLB.com:
Top 50 Prospects to be unveiled tonight — MLB Network to air countdown, with MLB.com streaming show live — In 2010, Braves outfielder Jason Heyward topped the charts before erupting onto the Major League scene out of Spring Training. A year before, Rays left-hander David Price led …
Discussion:
Britt's Bird Watch, The LoHud Yankees Blog and NotGraphs Baseball
