Acquiring left-hander could make St. Louis an early World Series favorite  —  Could Cards look to add starter?  —  MLB.com Cardinals reporter Jenifer Langosch looks at whether the health of their starters could cause them to add depth to their rotation  —  If the Cardinals add Cole Hamels …

US govt. clears Cuban flamethrower Lopez to sign  —  Cuban right-handed pitching prospect Yoan Lopez has been cleared by the United States government, and he is expected to sign with a Major League team before the start of Spring Training, according to industry an source.

Foul Territory Blog  —  Joey Gallo was named the Texas Rangers Minor League Tom Grieve Player of the Year after hitting 42 home runs in 126 games with Class A Myrtle Beach and Double A Frisco.  It was Texas minor league record.  Gallo, 21, also had 106 RBIs while batting .271

Rooftop owners' suit accuses Cubs of bad faith in Wrigley redevelopment  —  The Chicago Cubs played hardball with Wrigley Field rooftop owners — blocking the historic ballpark views of owners who refused to sell up, while clearing the sightlines from rooftops the Cubs were able to purchase, a lawsuit filed Thursday alleges.

Mets Fan Campaigns Against Team Owner Fred Wilpon  —  Plan Is to Rent Billboards Near Citi Field, Imploring Team's Owners to Sell Franchise  —  About two months ago, a group of disgruntled Jets fans placed several billboards near MetLife Stadium that called for the firing of general manager John Idzik.

HOW ZOBRIST FITS WITH THE NATIONALS  —  One rival executive calls Ben Zobrist “the Andrew Miller of position players,” explaining that the Rays' super-utility man makes sense for all 29 other clubs.  —  The fit for the Nationals, in particular, is almost perfect - and the team's need …

2015 Milwaukee Brewers Top 10 Prospects  —  Want More?  Complete 2015 Top 10 Prospects Rankings  —  Get it all: Subscribe to Baseball America  —  Go 30 deep: Order the 2015 Prospect Handbook!  —  The Brewers' record stood at 73-58 on Aug. 25, and they led the National League Central …

Rockies reveal 2015 Minor League staff assignments  —  DENVER — Longtime Rockies staff member Duane Espy will fill the newly created post of hitting coordinator, the Rockies announced Thursday as they revealed their Minor League staff assignments for 2015.  —  Espy, entering his 13th season …

Sources: QB Hill asks for release from A&M  —  Texas A&M sophomore quarterback Kenny Hill has asked for his release from the school and is expected to transfer, sources close to Hill and the program told ESPN.com on Thursday.  —  Hill, from the north Dallas suburb of Southlake, could be looking to play closer to home.

Sources say Hinkie reneged on agreement to release Kirilenko  —  When the 76ers play the Nets on Friday night in Brooklyn, there won't be any on-court reunions with former teammates for the three players involved in a Dec. 11 trade between the teams.  That's because none of them will be there.

Angels, Braves Swap Minor Leaguers  —  5:57pm: The Braves announced that they have traded Kubitza and right-hander Nate Hyatt to the Angels in exchange for left-hander Ricardo Sanchez.  —  4:49pm: The Angels are close to acquiring third base prospect Kyle Kubitza from the Braves, reports MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez (Twitter links).