Huff, Orioles close to three-year deal  —  The Orioles, thwarted in earlier attempts to add a top slugger, are close to signing free agent Aubrey Huff to a three-year contract worth at least $18 million, FOXSports.com has learned.  —  Huff, who recently turned 30, will be the Orioles' second …

Solid Witt pitched with guts, savvy  —  Longtime Ranger held his own with league's best  —  The Rangers were 44-44 and six games out of first place on July 13, 1997, when they sent Bobby Witt to the mound to face the division-leading Seattle Mariners at the old Kingdome.

Howard fires agent; new deal could come soon  —  In what could be a significant move in the pursuit of a big payday, Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard has dismissed agent Larry Reynolds.  —  According to the Phillies, Howard, who won the 2006 National League MVP in his first full season, is looking for new representation.

Zito deal gives 126 million reasons to expect Santana will be gone  —  The lefty's Giants contract means Johan Santana's price tag will be well out of reach of the Twins' budget.  —  The Twins' offseason officially became depressing on Thursday.  This happened when Barry Zito …

Pos-itive Royals thoughts  —  WARNING: The following column contains blatantly positive comments about the Kansas City Royals, including compliments of the Glass family, continuing belligerent optimism about the Gil Meche signing and a closer look at how general manager Dayton Moore intends …

Dice-K is already pitching for Sox — in Japanese ads  —  Team hopes to exploit star's power to gain marketing clout over there  —  Newly minted Red Sox hurler Daisuke Matsuzaka donned a Red Sox uniform to make his latest pitch in Japan.  —  The Japanese baseball star, also known as …

Reader Comments and Retorts  —  Statements posted here are those of our readers and do not represent the BaseballThinkFactory.  Names are provided by the poster and are not verified.  We ask that posters follow our submission policy.  Please report any inappropriate comments.

A's have options to fill Zito's spot  —  KENNEDY, SAARLOOS, HALSEY TOP CANDIDATES  —  Preparation for life after Barry Zito started at the 2005 All-Star break, when the A's acquired Joe Kennedy in a trade for fan favorite Eric Byrnes.  —  The future Zito-less rotation was also evident …

The wild and wacky from 2006 … Once again this year, baseball proved that truth is stranger than sci-fi, stranger than a Britney Spears marriage, stranger even than Nicole Ritchie's interpretation of her GPS instructions.  —  So with 2007 lurking over the horizon, let's look back at the Strange But True Feats of the Year:

Signing doesn't make sense for Zito, Giants  —  In the run-up to his recent signing, Barry Zito said his aim was to join a team with a legitimate shot at winning the World Series.  However, his recent decision to ink with the San Francisco Giants suggests other priorities.