Royals reach preliminary agreement with Dotel  —  KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Reliever Octavio Dotel and the Kansas City Royals reached a preliminary agreement Friday on a $5 million, one-year contract.  —  Dotel's deal allows him to earn about $2.5 million in performance bonuses based on games finished.

Case Closed: Bonds re-signs with Giants  —  LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — The Cardinals insisted Thursday they weren't Barry Bonds' "mystery team."  —  But for a short while during this week's winter meetings, they were a mildly intrigued team before the slugger wound up re-signing with the San Francisco Giants late Thursday.

Sometimes, madness is appropriate  —  Yes, at first glance, it seems a little — what's the word here? — let us say "surprising" that the Royals gave pitcher Gil Meche a five-year, $55 million deal.  However, upon closer inspection, it seems clear that ...  OK, whoa, whoa, let's slow down a little bit.

Payroll is lower, but key deals still linger  —  White Sox general manager Ken Williams has kept the club ahead of the financial curve, but important decisions are ahead.  —  Trading right-hander Freddy Garcia to Philadelphia has lowered the Sox's 2007 player payroll obligations to about $84 million for 14 players.

Report: Dodgers could file tampering charge  —  The Boston Red Sox might still view the New York Yankees as the Evil Empire.  But other Major League Baseball people apparently think of the Red Sox as a team that can operate outside of the rules, according to a report in The New York Times.

Seattle Mariners  —  Baseball America's Top 10 Prospects lists are based on projections of a player's long-term worth after discussions with scouting and player-development personnel.  All players who haven't exceeded the major league rookie standards of 130 at-bats or 50 innings pitched (without regard to service time) are eligible.

Ohka offered Major League contract  —  Right-hander will begin second stint with club if he agrees  —  LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — The Nationals have offered free agent Tomo Ohka a Major League contract, MLB.com has learned.  If he agrees to the deal, Ohka will begin his second stint with the organization.

Rule 5 yields Labandeira, 2 other picks  —  Infielder was suspended for amphetamines  —  · The Marlins opted to spare somebody the burden of living up to Dan Uggla's Rule 5 legacy.  —  Thursday's Winter Meetings-culminating Rule 5 Draft was over in less than 40 minutes and did not feature …

Villone declines Yanks' arbitration offer  —  Reliever wants to play in New York, but keeping options open  —  NEW YORK — Ron Villone declined the Yankees' arbitration offer Thursday, leaving the left-hander available on the free-agent market.  —  Villone, who returned Thursday from a 12 …

Cashman to A-Rod: 'We love you'  —  GM meets with slugger's agent to express support  —  LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Yankees general manager Brian Cashman sent a strong message to Alex Rodriguez in a long dinner meeting Wednesday night with agent Scott Boras: "We love you, and you're not going anywhere.''