Top News:
CBSSports.com Blogs:
Rockies, Cards, Jays among those in on Beltran — The market for Carlos Beltran is heating up, with at least five clubs and possibly more seriously talking with the free agent outfielder. Among them, according to sources: The Toronto Blue Jays, St. Louis Cardinals and …
Discussion:
MLB Rumors, SI Tracking Blog, Bluebird Banter, Drunk Jays Fans and Baseball Nation
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Fox Sports:
Who's still in Fielder market, who's not — Albert Pujols will turn 32 next month. It's very possible that his best seasons are behind him. He just signed a 10-year, $254 million contract with the Angels. — Prince Fielder, 27, is entering his prime. He had the better 2011 regular season.
Discussion:
MLB Rumors, Drunk Jays Fans and Yahoo! Sports
Jerry Crasnick / MLB:
Crasnick: “The Book” on Fielder
Discussion:
Baseball Nation, DRaysBay, Deadspin, Drunk Jays Fans, HardballTalk and MLB Rumors
Chad Finn / Boston Globe:
Report: Sox acquire Mark Melancon from Astros — The Red Sox have made a significant addition to their bullpen, acquiring righthanded reliever Mark Melancon from the Astros for infielder Jed Lowrie and reliever Kyle Weiland. — Melancon, a hard-throwing 26-year-old had a 2.78 earned run average …
Discussion:
MLB Daily Dish, The Mighty Quinn Media Machine, Yahoo! Sports and The Heater Feed
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Tim Dierkes / MLB Rumors:
Red Sox Acquire Melancon For Lowrie, Weiland — The Red Sox acquired reliever Mark Melancon from the Astros for shortstop Jed Lowrie and starter Kyle Weiland, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. ESPN's Jerry Crasnick first tweeted that Weiland was traded to Houston in a deal that involved a reliever going to Boston.
Discussion:
The LoHud Yankees Blog, baseballmusings.com, FanGraphs Baseball and Over the Monster
Alex Speier / Full Count:
Kelly Shoppach agreement spells likely end for Jason Varitek with Red Sox
Discussion:
Surviving Grady
Peter Abraham / Boston Globe:
Shoppach ‘excited’ to return to Red Sox
Discussion:
joy of sox, Over the Monster, MLB Daily Dish and MLB Rumors
Jeff Passan / Yahoo! Sports:
Darvish bidding process is cloak-and-dagger affair — The Yu Darvish sweepstakes is turning into a spy novel. An international man of mystery. Exorbitant amounts of money. Suspense. Lies. Subterfuge. The only things missing are a shifty mole and a double cross.
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Paul White / USA Today:
Baseball buzz turns to imports Yu Darvish, Yoenis Cespedes — Exclusive rights to negotiate with Darvish, a Japanese pitcher, will be awarded to one major league team this week. All 30 will have the opportunity within weeks, if not days, to woo Cespedes, a Cuban outfielder who defected …
Discussion:
LA Times Sports Blog
John Harper / NY Daily News:
MLB is banking on Mets woes and may jump to take control as Wilpons will soon feel the financial squeeze — Source says cash crisis on club may go beyond control of Bud & Co. — On the day after word was leaked of the Mets taking out yet another loan, here is what you heard Tuesday …
Discussion:
Amazin' Avenue, MetsBlog.com, HardballTalk, Mets Cetera, baseballmusings.com, ESPN and MLB.com
Jeff Jacobs / Hartford Courant:
The Agony Of Filling Out A Hall Of Fame Ballot — Does Jeff Bagwell belong in the Hall of Fame? (Courant file photo) — While leaving an empty box next to Jeff Bagwell's name ... Lots of folks have a bucket list, or at least that's the term they assign to it after the 2007 movie with Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman.
Discussion:
HardballTalk, The Yankee Analysts and Bluebird Banter
Bob Raissman / NY Daily News:
Former Yankees manager Lou Piniella set to return to Bombers as YES Network television analyst — Sources say Sweet Lou expected to also serve as spring training instructor — Former Yankees player and manager Lou Piniella is expected to rejoin the Bombers as a member of their YES Network broadcast team.
Discussion:
An A-Blog for A-Rod, River Avenue Blues, The LoHud Yankees Blog, MLB.com and Bronx Baseball Daily
JonPaulMorosi / mlbbuzz:
Source: Indians, Jose Lopez in serious talks — The Indians, looking for a right-handed bat to help balance their predominantly left-handed lineup, have had serious discussions with free-agent infielder Jose Lopez, a major-league source told FOXSports.com. — Lopez has posted an OPS …
Discussion:
HardballTalk, Wahoo's on First, MLB Daily Dish and MLB Rumors
Marc Topkin / St. Petersburg Times:
Ranking the pitchers the Tampa Bay Rays are most likely to trade — The Rays have one of those good kinds of problems, with an excess of starting pitching. They insist they're not seeking to trade one and would be fine going to spring training with all eight.
Discussion:
HardballTalk and DRaysBay
Joe Cowley / Chicago Sun Times:
Don Cooper rubbed Sox wrong way — Jake Peavy in particular — The relationship between Jake Peavy and pitching coach Don Cooper (above) disintegrated last season when the right-hander believed Cooper threw him under the bus in several interviews. Nam Y. Huh~AP
