Top News:
Peter Abraham / Boston Globe:
Four votes for the Hall of Fame — Here are the players I selected for the Hall of Fame: — Larkin, Raines and Trammell were on my ballot last year. Nothing changed as far as their merits. — Briefly, Larkin and Trammell were consistent, productive players who dominated a premium position for a long period of time.
Discussion:
HardballTalk and Deadspin
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Kuiperfan / Joe Posnanski:
HOF Story 3: The Yea Votes — People talk all the time about who “feels” like a Hall of Famer and who does not. I know exactly what they're saying, because I feel those same impulses... and yet, I don't know exactly why it's true — why some players feel like Hall of Famers while others (who might be even better players) do not.
Discussion:
THE BOOK and HardballTalk
Ron Chimelis / Union-News:
Writer picks his Baseball Hall of Fame final four: Bagwell, Morris, Larkin, McGriff
Discussion:
HardballTalk
Richard Durrett / ESPN:
Yorvit Torrealba suspended in Venezuela … Texas Rangers backup catcher Yorvit Torrealba has been suspended 66 games by the Venezuelan League for striking an umpire, league president Jose Grasso Vecchio announced Monday morning on Twitter. — The suspension covers the rest of this season …
Discussion:
Yahoo! Sports and Deadspin
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Brian Costa / Wall Street Journal:
Knuckleballs of Kilimanjaro: Dickey Plots Ascent — When he goes out for his daily run, Mets pitcher R.A. Dickey straps on a black mask covering his eyes, nose and mouth. The guise has two distinct effects. The first is to limit his oxygen intake, simulating the conditions at a high altitude.
Discussion:
HardballTalk and Deadspin
Mark Sheldon / MLB.com:
Reds unable to follow up strong campaign — After 2010 division title, injuries, rotation woes led to subpar ‘11 — CINCINNATI — The Reds’ 2011 season began with high expectations and ended in disappointment. — You couldn't blame a single person in the organization for feeling that way.
Fox Sports:
Yanks end days of splurging on talent — Crazy times, is what baseball people are telling us about the game's current financial state. The Yankees and Red Sox are frozen in place, refusing to splurge, while the Marlins and Angels have blown through their retirement funds.
Maury Brown / The Biz of Baseball:
2011 MLB Salaries See 3% Increase, Rangers Lead All Clubs — Each year, a litany of articles are written about who is spending what on player payrolls in Major League Baseball based upon the Opening Day rosters. — But, a more telling set of numbers arrives each year, well after the season has ended …
Discussion:
Baseball Nation, Lone Star Ball, Lookout Landing and MLB Rumors
John Tomase / Boston Herald:
Mike Boyle a good fit with Sox — List of clients speaks tostrength of trainer's work — In between Ulf “Bleeping” Samuelsson and 50 goals in 49 games, Cam Neely endured what amounted to two years of mental anguish, brutally hard work and pain. With him every step of the way was Mike Boyle.
Discussion:
Over the Monster and FenwayNation
Bill Price / NY Daily News:
Will David Wright situation force Bud Selig's hand when it comes to Mets? — First, a belated Merry Christmas to all of you. I actually posted something Friday, but for some reason it never made it to the blog. In short, I wore my Turk Wendell jersey around on Friday …
Discussion:
MetsBlog.com
Joe Frisaro / The Fish Pond:
Keeping Dobbs a top priority — MIAMI — Exploring the market for a frontline starting pitcher is high on the Marlins' shopping list. — But it's not the club's most immediate priority. — Right now, bringing back free agent Greg Dobbs is a main objective, and the team is hoping to finalize a deal done soon.
Discussion:
Fish Tank blog, MLB Daily Dish, HardballTalk and MLB Rumors
Mike Axisa / MLB Rumors:
Cubs Agree To Sign Andy Sonnanstine — The Cubs have agreed to sign Andy Sonnanstine to a non-guaranteed split contract for the 2012 season, the team announced. The Rays non-tendered the Beverly Hills Sports Council client earlier this month rather than give him a raise his second time through arbitration.
Discussion:
Bleed Cubbie Blue and Yahoo! Sports
Derrick Goold / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
‘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.
Discussion:
Federal Baseball
Michael Silverman / Boston Herald:
Red Sox can often be late risers — + Recent Articles + Recent Blog Entries + Email — If anything will help the case of Varitek, who will turn 40 in April, it is that in a limited role last season — 64 starts — he tended to get pretty good results from the pitching staff.
Discussion:
HardballTalk
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