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4:40 PM ET, January 31, 2012

Ballbug

 Top News: 
Jeff Blair / Globe and Mail:
Blue Jays brass talks playoffs  —  TORONTO— From Tuesday's Globe and Mail  —  You think Paul Beeston was dreaming when he talked Monday about getting grass to grow at a baseball-specific Rogers Centre?  —  That's nothing.  It turns out he envisions the Toronto Blue Jays in the playoffs two or three times in the next five years.
RELATED:
Nick Cafardo / Boston Globe:
Is Edwin Jackson about to make a decision?  —  Lots of buzz out there about the possibility that free-agent righty Edwin Jackson may accept a one-year deal with a contender to improve his value and go back into the free-agent market next season.  —  Right now it doesn't look like Boston,
RELATED:
Dan Connolly / Baltimore Sun:
Edwin Jackson likely to land one-year deal; hurts Orioles chances in sweepstakes  —  Right-handed pitcher Edwin Jackson, the best free agent remaining on the market, is much more likely to accept a one-year deal and test free agency again after the 2012 season than to ink a multi-year contract, according to an industry source.
Discussion: MLB Rumors
Jordan Bastian / MLB.com:
Tribe acquires Canzler from Tampa Bay  —  Youngster offers right-handed bat, alternative at first base  —  CLEVELAND — The Indians have added an intriguing bat to the Spring Training mix.  —  On Tuesday, Cleveland acquired first baseman Russ Canzler from Tampa Bay in exchange for cash considerations.
Discussion: Let's Go Tribe and Yahoo! Sports
RELATED:
Ben Nicholson-Smith / MLB Rumors:   Indians Acquire Russ Canzler
Jayson Stark / MLB:
Stark: NL Central suddenly has an identity crisis  —  Prince, Pujols and La Russa are gone, and Brewers could lose Braun for first 50 games  —  It isn't exactly true that every time Prince Fielder moves, the entire earth wobbles.  But it's 100 percent true that when Fielder signed his monstrous nine-year …
Discussion: HardballTalk
Bruce Levine / ESPN:
Source: Yankees hire Jim Hendry  —  Former Chicago Cubs general manager Jim Hendry has been hired by the New York Yankees as a special assistant to GM Brian Cashman, according to a major league source.  —  Hendry, who was the Cubs GM from 2002 to 2011, was let go by chairman Tom Ricketts after two straight fifth-place finishes.
Rob Biertempfel / PittsburghLIVE.com:
Pirates catching prospect Sanchez injured in offseason scuffle  —  Tony Sanchez, the Pirates' top catcher prospect, again got into hot water with the team when he sustained a broken jaw in a bar brawl earlier this offseason.  —  Sources told the Tribune-Review the fight happened …
mdn.mainichi.jp:
Baseball: Matsuzaka throws 1st bullpen session since injury  —  FORT MYERS, Florida (Kyodo) — Boston Red Sox right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka on Monday threw his first bullpen session since undergoing season-ending elbow surgery last June.  —  In the team's spring training complex in Florida …
Steven Marcus / Newsday:
Source: Mets to sell 10 shares of team  —  The Mets expect to sell 10 minority shares of the team by the end of February, a person familiar with the process said Monday.  The units, priced at $20 million each, would raise $200 million for the cash-strapped franchise and be used to pay existing loans and operating expenses for 2012.
Todd Zolecki / MLB.com:
Phils bolster bullpen with veteran righty Qualls  —  PHILADELPHIA — The Phillies wanted more bullpen depth, so on Tuesday they signed right-hander Chad Qualls to a one-year, $1.15 million contract.  —  Qualls is expected to join a bullpen that could include Jonathan Papelbon, Jose Contreras …
Discussion: Yahoo! Sports and Phillies Nation
Alan M. Nathan / Baseball Prospectus:
The Knuckleball Mystique: Using PITCHf/x to Distinguish Perception from Reality  —  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 …
Discussion: THE BOOK
Andy Martino / NY Daily News:
Yankees considering bringing in Bill Hall as super utility man, righthanded bat off bench  —  Bombers eye ex-Astro, Giant as infielder  —  Bill Hall (l.) could slide into a Yankee uniform this offseason.  —  The Yankees have engaged in discussions with free agent Bill Hall about a possible utility role …
Chris Haft / MLB.com:
Giants ready for huge crowds at FanFest  —  SAN FRANCISCO — Like an accomplished hitter, the Giants will strive to use the whole field to facilitate crowd control at Saturday's FanFest.  —  Last year's event frustrated thousands of fans who spent their day at AT&T Park waiting in lines to see the then-reigning World Series champions.
Fox Sports:
Hamels deserves big money from Phillies  —  Virtually all contracts are defensible, even ones that don't turn out so well.  —  Philadelphia Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. had his reasons for awarding a monster extension to first baseman Ryan Howard and massive free-agent deals …
Discussion: HardballTalk and Baseball Nation
 
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 More News: 
Anthony DiComo / MLB.com:
Inbox: Why not platoon Murphy, Turner?
Todd Zolecki / MLB.com:
Amaro eyes May return for Howard
Evan Drellich / MLB.com:
Past and present meet at Fenway benefit
Discussion: Boston Globe
Ben Nicholson-Smith / MLB Rumors:
Minor Moves: Delcarmen, Tolbert, Gonzalez
Brian McTaggart / MLB.com:
Crane tells fans: Astros name remains the same
Discussion: Yahoo! Sports
MLB.com:
Cubs invite 21 non-roster players to Major League Spring Training
Discussion: MLB Daily Dish
Access Hollywood:
Mark Cuban On Leaving Behind The Dodgers Deal & Welcoming Khloe & Lamar To Dallas
Discussion: HardballTalk and NESN.com
Andrew Marchand / ESPN:
25Q/25D: Who is the real Phil Hughes?
 Earlier Picks: 
Joey Nowak / MLB.com:
Start times set for regular-season games
Ben Nicholson-Smith / MLB Rumors:
Brewers Sign Corey Patterson
Associated Press:
Brooks Robinson recovering at home
Discussion: Yahoo! Sports
Adam J. Morris / Lone Star Ball:
Rangers sign Ron Washington to two year contract extension
Adam Rubin / ESPN:
Buchholz plans to skip 2012
Alden Gonzalez / MLB.com Hot Stove Blog:
Angels bring back Rodriguez on Minors deal
Discussion: MLB Daily Dish and MLB Rumors
Associated Press:
Tigers' Martinez needs 2nd surgery, out for year
Rotoworld.com:
The 2012 Fantasy Baseball Season Starts Now!
Discussion: HardballTalk
 

 
From WeSmirch:

James Hibberd / The Hollywood Reporter:
‘Game of Thrones’ Movie in Early Development at Warner Bros.

TMZ.com:
Josh and Heather Altman Leaving ‘Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles’

TMZ.com:
Dodgers Fan Blows Off Hand With Firework During World Series Celebration

 
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