Top News:
Dejan Kovacevic / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:
Spring Training: McLouth bumps Gerut in surprising move — Santos named fifth starter, four players cut to finalize roster — FORT MYERS, Fla. — Nate McLouth would not board the bus. — Having seen teammate Jose Bautista — pillow in hand — get pulled off a bus earlier in the week …
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Rob Rossi / PittsburghLIVE.com:
Pirates make roster moves — BRADENTON, Fla. — The Pirates made roster moves Friday morning prior to their exhibition game in Fort Myers, Fla., against the Minnesota Twins. — Optioned to Class AAA Indianapolis was outfielder Jody Gerut. — Pitcher Brandon Duckworth was reassigned to the club's minor-league camp.
Minneapolis Star Tribune:
Twins' Liriano charged with DUI — FORT MYERS, Fla. — Twins lefthander Francisco Liriano was arrested by the Cape Coral Police Department early Thursday and charged with driving under the influence. — Liriano was pulled over at 1:58 a.m. after leaving a Cape Coral bar. He was driving alone at the time.
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Jason Williams / twincities.com:
Liriano arrested on a drunk-driving charge — FORT MYERS, Fla. — Twins star pitching prospect Francisco Liriano was arrested on a misdemeanor drunk-driving charge early Thursday morning, according to a Lee County Sheriff's report. — Liriano, 22, was booked in the Lee County jail at 5:33 a.m., according to the report.
Discussion:
Commentary Page
Associated Press:
Kris, Anna Benson headed for divorce — FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Anna Benson wants a divorce from Orioles pitcher Kris Benson, who still thinks the Mets traded him because of his impulsive wife. — Anna Benson, an actress and model who has posed topless, filed for divorce in Atlanta on Thursday.
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NY Daily News:
Bensons kayoed — Hubby hurler cheated, sez sexpot Anna — Sexpot Anna Benson and her ex-Met hubby are headed for Splitsville after she caught him fooling around with one of her friends, the Daily News has learned. — The naughtiest wife in baseball filed for divorce yesterday from pitcher Kris Benson …
Thomas Boswell / Washington Post:
Hit, or Miss — Everybody knows what's wrong with the Nationals. We've listened to the litany since last fall when Esteban Loaiza and Hector Carrasco left town. We heard the wails when Brian Lawrence and Luis Ayala were lost for the season to injuries. Ramon Ortiz, Tony Armas …
John Delcos / The Journal News:
Randolph weighing final roster spots — PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — The Mets have two spring-training games left to find the answer to their last significant roster question: should they take 11 or 12 pitchers north? — A day after he revealed the order of his rotation, manager Willie Randolph …
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Mark Hale / New York Post:HELL TO VICTOR — March 31, 2006 — PORT ST. LUCIE - The NCAA is down to its Final Four.
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Mike's Mets
Ben Shpigel / New York Times:As Mets Ponder Final Cuts, Roster Has International Cast
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A New York Mets Blog
Enrique Rojas / ESPN:
Source: Ortiz, Red Sox close to $50M deal … MIAMI — Dominican David Ortiz is about to sign a $50 million extension of his contract with the Boston Red Sox, a family member told ESPNdeportes.com. — If the new contract is finalized, "Big Papi" would earn an average $12.5 million per year from 2007 to 2010.
Tony Kuttner / MLB.com:
Notes: A's get Dominguez from Texas — Oakland ships Bynum, Rheinecker to Texas for righty — OAKLAND — The A's on Friday picked up a relatively young arm they've been coveting, giving up a promising hitter for whom they had no room. — In a three-team deal, Oakland acquired right-hander Juan Dominguez …
Don Walker / JSOnline:
New deal for Miller, Brewers — dwalker@journalsentinel.com — The Miller Brewing Co. and the Milwaukee Brewers have reached agreement on a new seven-year marketing and promotions deal. — The deal is separate from an existing naming-rights agreement for Miller Park …
John Hickey / Seattle Post-Intelligencer:
Mariners Notebook: Chaves plants seed of optimism — Pitching coach puts belief ahead of spring numbers — LAS VEGAS — Cactus League 2006 is in the books. There will be no more Arizona abnormalities to point to in trying to figure out just what the numbers of the spring mean.
Mark Feinsand / MLB.com:
Feeling good, Mussina ready for '06 — Veteran righty, Torre pleased with spring performance — TAMPA, Fla. — Mike Mussina's spring has been a successful one, most notably for the lack of any pain, discomfort or irritation in his right elbow. Forget the lofty 7.32 ERA, he's ready for the season to begin.
Joint Posting / The Baseball Analysts:
Two on Two: 2006 NL East Preview — The Two on Two series stay on the right coast and concludes with the NL East. Here with us today to preview the division that the Atlanta Braves have owned for the past decade are Mac Thomason of Braves Journal and Jeremy Heit of Metsgeek.
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Sabernomics
