If free agent Jose Reyes goes, so does NY Mets' hope  —  Cost-cutting team can't pretend to be contender without him  —  For weeks, it has seemed likely the Mets were going to retain Jose Reyes only if he fell in their laps.  Maybe they had a chance if other teams were scared off …

MONEY IN THE NINTH: RYAN MADSON DEAL RAISES BAR FOR JONATHAN PAPELBON, CLOSER MARKET  —  Well, that didn't take long.  —  The starter's pistol for free agent closers went off on Tuesday, and teams in the market for free agent closers were floored when it did so.

Rangers must make splash in free agency  —  The Rangers need to change the conversation, and I'm not talking about manager Ron Washington's earthy speech to his players before Game 7 of the World Series.  —  No, I'm talking about spring training, when the team will want to move past its crushing Series defeat.

Source: Progress made in labor talks  —  Negotiations in Major League Baseball's stalled labor talks have taken “a step forward” this week, according to one source familiar with the discussions, and a second source told ESPN.com it's possible a deal could be completed this week.

Crasnick: Seven offseason questions for baseball executives  —  Pursue Albert Pujols or Prince Fielder?  Go after C.J. Wilson or Mark Buehrle?  Plus ...  ESPN.com  —  Major League Baseball's general managers will gather next week in Milwaukee as a prelude to the quarterly owners' meetings.

Bucs keep perspective with payroll flexibility  —  PITTSBURGH — Payroll has been a hot-button topic in Pittsburgh for years and likely will be as long as the Pirates' payroll figure remains among the lowest in the Majors.  The Pirates opened the 2011 season with the 27th-lowest payroll …

Ex-Chicago Cubs manager Mike Quade didn't want other position with team  —  Former Chicago Cubs manager Mike Quade said Wednesday he doesn't believe his fate was sealed by the lack of a quality roster for the 2011 season.  —  Quade was fired by new president of baseball operations Theo Epstein …

Red Sox to interview Lovullo on Friday, Lamont on Saturday  —  Toronto Blue Jays first base coach Torey Lovullo will interview with the Red Sox on Friday.  Detroit third base coach Gene Lamont will follow on Saturday.  —  They join Pete Mackanin, Dale Sveum and Sandy Alomar Jr. as candidates to replace Terry Francona as manager.

Yankees ready to enter arms race  —  The Yankees are sampling a wide marketplace for pitching, though it might be awhile until general manager Brian Cashman is ready to proceed to the checkout counter.  —  On the free agent front, Cashman already has reached out to Bob Garber …

Ian Stewart remains a possibility at third base for Rockies  —  The Rockies have a number of directions they can pursue to address third base, an offensive sinkhole last season.  —  While a trade cannot be ruled out — the top targets, Kevin Youkilis of the Red Sox and David Wright of the Mets …

Duquette re-enters Majors with Orioles position  —  Former Red Sox GM introduced as VP of baseball operations  —  BALTIMORE — After more than nine years out of Major League Baseball, Dan Duquette was officially introduced Tuesday morning as the Orioles' executive vice president of baseball operations …