Sources: Pujols altered deal to help land Wilson  —  Albert Pujols was on the receiving end of one of the most lucrative contracts in professional sports history when he agreed with the Los Angeles Angels on a 10-year deal for about $250 million earlier this month.

Shoulder surgery will delay return of Ryan Kalish  —  The trade of Josh Reddick to Oakland opened up significant playing time in right field for the Red Sox.  One logical solution would be Ryan Kalish, the athletic 23-year-old who performed well in 2010 before being sidelined for nearly all of the 2011 season with injuries.

Confident Danks earns five-year extension  —  Deal worth $65 million, includes varied no-trade clauses  —  CHICAGO — When John Danks went year-by-year contractually over the past three seasons, shunning multi-year offers from the White Sox, the southpaw basically went all-in on his ultimate value as a player.

Steroid Era complicates Hall balloting  —  Back in May, I wrote that it was wrong to speculate about any player using performance-enhancing drugs without any actual evidence of that use.  —  That column was about Jose Bautista.  It could have been about Jeff Bagwell, though I made no specific mention of him at the time.

Report: Former long-time Oriole Melvin Mora announces retirement  —  According to a report out of Venezuela, former long-time Oriole Melvin Mora announced his retirement from Major League Baseball on Thursday while in his home country.  —  Mora, who will turn 40 in February …

St. Louisian Don Mueller, former big-league star, dies  —  Image  —  St. Louisan Don Mueller, who led the majors in hits in 1954 and roamed the outfield with Willie Mays of the New York Giants, died on Wednesday.  He was 84.  —  Mueller, a native St. Louisan who played at CBC …

Former pitcher Garcia killed in auto accident  —  ARLINGTON — Former Rangers pitcher Rosman Garcia was killed in a car accident in his native Venezuela early Thursday morning.  He was 32.  —  According to The Associated Press, Garcia was killed when his car skidded off the road and hit a tree.

To Live and Die in Three Rivers Stadium, Or: The Face of Michael Cimino  —  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 …

Nats player: We are “shooting for” Prince  —  There's been a lot of discussion and debate lately about whether the improving Washington Nationals are one of the teams trying to sign free agent slugger Prince Fielder.  —  And while there's still nothing definitive on the subject, one Nats player told me Thursday, “We're in the market.

Predictions: MLB … We're coming to the end of a fascinating year of baseball, with tremendous comebacks, a surprise World Series winner, one of the great single days in the game's history and the news that we'll have labor peace for years to come.  Can 2012 top that?  Perhaps.

Doctor who treated A-Rod: I can cure arthritis  —  The doctor that New York Yankees star Alex Rodriguez traveled to Germany to see for his aching knee and shoulder is a former physician for Pope John Paul II who claims to be a miracle worker when it comes to reversing arthritis.