Source: Torre, Sabean to talk about comments  —  Joe Torre, who oversees baseball operations for Major League Baseball, plans to call Brian Sabean regarding comments the San Francisco Giants general manager made in a Thursday radio interview, a source told ESPN on Friday.

Nine of 30 teams reportedly in violation of MLB debt service rules  —  Dodgers' and Mets' issues are well-known but others are said to carry debt 10 times more than annual earnings.  McCourts' personal use of redirected funds makes situation different, consultant says.

Hottovy's dream of reaching Majors realized  —  BOSTON — About two months ago, Tommy Hottovy was just another Minor League reliever throwing Spring Training games when the Red Sox regulars skipped a road trip.  —  “But in Spring Training, you take a three-hour bus ride …

Pitching will be primary target as Yankees seek to upgrade roster  —  Perception vs. reality.  —  It feels like the Yankees offense and bullpen have underachieved this year and that the rotation has been central to success.  —  Yet, at the exact one-third-of-the-season mark, 54 games …

Rays owner Stuart Sternberg tweaks Hillsborough fans who won't cross the bay  —  TAMPA — Rays owner Stuart Sternberg insinuated Thursday night that baseball fans in Hillsborough County are reluctant to drive to St. Petersburg to watch the Rays play.  —  During an owners roundtable discussion …

Let's play 154!  —  Shortening the season would ease players' mental and physical burdens, improve play  —  By our count — and it took a LOT of counting — you can find 158 big leaguers hanging out on somebody's disabled list.  —  And amazingly, that counts only Rich Harden ONCE.

Mets' David Wright has team-specific option in 2013, making potential trade tougher than expected  —  However one defines the concept of “superstar,” David Wright is a top-shelf third baseman, and perennial All-Star.  The widely held perception that he could fetch a heaping pile of prospects in a trade …

Can Baseball Expertise Be a Bad Thing?  —  Believe it or not, most of our writers didn't enter the world sporting an @baseballprospectus.com address; with a few exceptions, they started out somewhere else.  In an effort to up your reading pleasure while tipping our caps to some of the most illuminating work …

Sources: Jon Garland headed to DL  —  CINCINNATI — Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Jon Garland, who hadn't been on the disabled list in 11 years until this spring, is expected to be placed there for the second time this season with a right-shoulder injury, the severity of which isn't immediately known …

The Shortest Possible Baseball Road Trip  —  (You can also read the results from this post in the Wall Street Journal here)  —  Every year thousands of baseball fans take long multi-city road trips to ballparks across the nation.  When planning such a road trip, a normal person would plan …

Defending the win: Correia racks up Ws  —  We shouldn't have to defend the win.  When Felix Hernandez won the American League Cy Young Award last season with only 13 wins (and 12 losses), it was considered something of a landmark moment for the slide rule set; a validation of sabermetric analysis …

Gerrit Cole still the top choice  —  But prep outfielder Bubba Starling could rise all the way to Seattle at No. 2  —  With three days to go until the 2011 MLB draft, it seems as if the names are clearer but the order is foggier.  Picks three through five are probably the same names …

Jeter still among MLB's top shortstops*  —  The asterisk?  The position isn't what it used to be — and neither is The Captain  —  ESPNNewYork.com  —  Not long ago, shortstop was the most glamorous offensive position in the sport.  Alex Rodriguez hit 57 homers.  Nomar Garciaparra batted .372.

Nix sits on Thursday in favor of Ankiel, Bernadina  —  PHOENIX — Although he has been the Nationals' most consistent hitter this season, outfielder Laynce Nix found himself on the bench against D-backs left-hander Zach Duke on Thursday.  —  Instead manager Jim Riggleman decided to play Rick Ankiel …