Cook being viewed as only starter, not reliever  —  FORT MYERS, Fla. — The question with Aaron Cook is simply this: Will he start the season in the Red Sox's starting rotation or on a Minor League rehab assignment so he can get more stretched out?  —  Manager Bobby Valentine has ruled …

Pregame notes: Yankees prepared for all rotation options  —  Yesterday Joe Girardi spoke in glowing terms about Freddy Garcia, and today he left very open the possibility of optioning either Ivan Nova or Michael Pineda to Triple-A to start the season.  —  “There's no gaurantee that the sixth starter goes to the bullpen,” Girardi said.

Sanchez shows Marlins shoulder is OK  —  JUPITER, Fla.—JUPITER, Fla. — Anibal Sanchez put to rest any questions about the Miami Marlins' rotation.  —  Sanchez allowed a run in five innings, including Carlos Beltran's second homer, and the Miami Marlins beat the St. Louis Cardinals 3-1 Thursday.

Rangers set rotation; Darvish will debut April 9  —  Lewis handed Opening Day assignment, followed by two lefties  —  SURPRISE, Ariz. — Two Japanese baseball icons will go head to head when the Rangers play the Mariners on April 9 at the Ballpark in Arlington.

Final score: Mets 9 Astros 1  —  The Mets (7-16-2) defeated the Astros (13-13) by the score of 9-1 tonight in Port St. Lucie.  —  For a full recap and box score, check out SNY.TV.  —  The Least You Should Know:  — Mike Pelfrey threw 6 1/3 innings and allowed one run on three hits, while striking out three and walking nobody.

Montero looking for V-Mart deal; no chance to get it with D-Backs  —  SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Improving Diamondbacks catcher Miguel Montero is said to be looking for a deal similar to Victor Martinez's $52-million, four-year contract, and the chances for him to make a deal with Arizona appear slim under those conditions.

Harang works six strong innings in defeat  —  Starter allows one run; Lindblom gives up decisive homer  —  GLENDALE, Ariz. — Trayce Thompson homered off Josh Lindblom in the seventh inning as the White Sox edged the Dodgers on Thursday, 3-1.  —  Starters Aaron Harang of the Dodgers …

Pierre makes Phillies roster  —  CLEARWATER, Fla. — Juan Pierre appeared in 158 games and batted 711 times in 2011 with the Chicago White Sox, his 12th year in the majors, but came to Phillies camp never completely assured of a job.  —  On Thursday, he finally was.

Stan Kasten Should Not Fire Ned Colletti  —  ...at least not now, anyway.  —  I've been seeing a surprising amount of unhappiness from Dodger fans over a series of notes from Bill Shaikin, Dylan Hernandez, and Tim Brown, who all claim that Stan Kasten not only plans to make no immediate moves …

Reyes, Hanley dye hair in Marlins color  —  JUPITER, Fla. — They're together on the left side of the Marlins infield.  Away from the field, they regularly play PlayStation.  Now, they've colored their hair together.  —  Since the Marlins have red-orange as a prominent color …

Sprained shoulder lands Carp on disabled list  —  TOKYO — Mariners left fielder Mike Carp was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Thursday, and the club recalled Carlos Peguero from Triple-A Tacoma to take his place.  —  Carp, 25, suffered a sprained right shoulder diving for a double hit …

Minor League Transactions: March 20-26  —  For many players, the mid- to late portion of spring training brings assignments to minor league camp in preparation for the season.  For others, it brings to an end their time with the organization that in many cases originally signed them.