Tumbling Dice...Pitcher not yet falling Sox way  —  With Thursday's midnight deadline for signing Daisuke Matsuzaka looming, the Red Sox are in a position of wondering, as one well-placed source said yesterday, whether agent Scott Boras is "running out the clock'' on negotiations.

Rangers, Lofton close to deal  —  The Rangers, moving to fill their center-field void, are close to signing free-agent center fielder Kenny Lofton, FOXSports.com has learned.  —  The deal, expected to be for one year, would give the Rangers a replacement for Gary Matthews Jr. …

Pettitte no bargain for Yankees  —  Enough fawning over the Yankees' signing of free-agent left-hander Andy Pettitte.  From the size of the contract to the condition of Pettitte's elbow to the decline in his 2006 performance, the deal is not as attractive as it appears.  —  First, the contract.

Outfielder-first baseman signs with Yankees … SANTIAGO, Dominican Republic — The New York Yankees signed Cuban prospect Juan Miranda to a four-year contract worth $2 million, the player told ESPNdeportes.com.  —  The deal, which includes a signing bonus of $500,000 …

Mesa reaches deal to pitch for Tigers in 19th season … Veteran reliever Jose Mesa has reached preliminary agreement on a one-year contract with the Detroit Tigers that will pay him about $2.5 million, two baseball sources said Sunday.  —  The deal will be completed when Mesa passes a physical exam this week, the sources said.

Fehr: Vote for players based on what they did on field … SANTIAGO, Dominican Republic — Donald Fehr doesn't want to tell journalists how to do their jobs, but he hopes that the shadow of alleged steroid use doesn't affect the chances of some to reach the baseball Hall of Fame.

A chilly reception for the Cards in Orlando  —  Plan A involved a push for Alfonso Soriano and lefthander Randy Wolf.  —  Plan B left them as one of two finalists for Jason Schmidt.  —  Three days after their Disney World winter meetings concluded uneventfully at Lake Buena Vista, Fla., the Cardinals are left to pursue Plan C.

Cubs banking on Marquis revival  —  Inconsistent righty gets 3-year contract  —  The Cubs filled out their rotation when they came to terms with free agent Jason Marquis on a three-year, $21 million deal, gambling that pitching coach Larry Rothschild can revive the enigmatic starter.

Hot Stove: Gonzalez cool through trade storm  —  By Dejan Kovacevic, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette  —  It is easy to imagine how Mike Gonzalez might have taken it all quite personally.  —  The Pirates spent the better part of the week trying to trade him to Atlanta for slugger Adam LaRoche …

Fearing Inflation at the Same Time as Fueling It  —  Two winters ago, after the Dodgers signed the oft-injured outfielder J. D. Drew to a five-year contract worth $55 million, the Los Angeles news media roasted the club's general manager, Paul DePodesta, alongside his order of magic beans.

In Today's Market, Even Ohka May Be Beyond Nats  —  In a normal offseason for a normal major league baseball team, the Washington Nationals' offer of a contract to free agent pitcher Tomo Ohka would make perfect sense.  —  The Nationals are in desperate need of starting pitchers …

Mets barring Jose from winter ball  —  STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS  —  The Mets shut the door on any chance of Jose Reyes playing winter ball yesterday when GM Omar Minaya told a Dominican TV station that the shortstop was too vital to the Mets to risk his health.

View from Pluto  —  Data on Derek  —  TALKIN' DEREK ANDERSON  —  • I looked up some stuff on Browns quarterback Derek Anderson, who did a decent job in the 27-7 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.  He has been a major achiever in high school — first in the history Oregon 3A sports …