Red Sox pitching coach Bob McClure on The Big Show: ‘Kick ass and win’  —  New Red Sox pitching coach Bob McClure has seen the benefits of shifting starters to the bullpen.  (AP)  —  Asked to articulate his pitching philosophy in an interview on The Big Show, new Red Sox pitching coach Bob …

MLB teams haven't finished shopping yet  —  You want established pitching?  Then you will pay through the nose for it.  —  That's the precedent set by the deals that transpired before Christmas: The Rangers won the posting bid for Japanese star Yu Darvish for $51.7 million …

MLB's new security chief understands danger — and baseball  —  NEW YORK - It's actually a boring job for the most part, being Major League Baseball's vice president for security.  A lot of chasing after counterfeiters and licensing violators.  A lot of crafting of memos and standardizing of procedure across all 30 teams.

Offseason twists to continue into 2012  —  In a typical offseason, most teams would be done making big moves by now.  —  This is not a typical offseason.  —  The week between Christmas and New Year's Day tends to be quiet in the baseball industry, when front offices sit empty and trade chatter is silenced.

‘Rarity’ Fielder remains unsigned  —  Image  —  If a team potentially interested in free agent Prince Fielder wonders how his power production compares to Harmon Killebrew or how his durability ranks with Pete Rose, Ichiro Suzuki and newly announced Hall of Famer Ron Santo, all that team has to do it ask.

PADRES: Club to re-engage in extension talks with Maybin  —  SAN DIEGO — The Padres will restart contact extension talks with Cameron Maybin next month, two sources confirmed.  —  General manager Josh Byrnes and representatives for the center fielder recently had a “broad” …

Holidays mean family time for ballplayers  —  Long-running traditions renewed every winter for Major Leaguers  —  They treasure those “opening” days of holidays past, filled with joy by presents ranging from Jered Weaver's first drum set to Mike Matheny's BB gun to Vinnie Pestano's original PlayStation 2 …

An entertaining package to open on Christmas  —  NEW YORK - It looks like the Jets are out of the way, but brace yourself for some weeks, maybe months, of chest-thumping from your obnoxious friends from New York.  Make way for the Big Apple Frauds.  The Knicks think they are finally better than the Celtics.

Writer picks his Baseball Hall of Fame final four: Bagwell, Morris, Larkin, McGriff  —  This business of voting for the Baseball Hall of Fame gets harder for me every year.  —  That's quite a statement, considering this was only my second year of doing it.

For Mets, Vast Debt and Not a Lot of Time  —  The finances of major professional sports teams exist largely as the secrets of privately held companies, except for the community-owned Green Bay Packers, who report their profits without a hint of resistance.  —  But elements of the Mets' finances …

Four Teams Talking To Hisashi Iwakuma  —  There are four teams talking to free agent Japanese right-hander Hisashi Iwakuma, according to Joe Stiglich of the Bay Area News Group (via Twitter).  The Athletics, who won the bidding on Iwakuma last winter but couldn't work out a contract, are one of the four, says Stiglich.