The Hall call arrives for Gwynn, Ripken  —  First ballot players to be inducted into Hall of Fame on July 29  —  NEW YORK — As anticipated, the dynamic duo of eight-time National League batting champion Tony Gwynn and Iron Man Cal Ripken Jr. earned election to the National Baseball Hall of Fame on Tuesday …

Randy Johnson Isn't Dead Yet  —  It's all but final, but Randy Johnson is headed back to Arizona after two disappointing years in the Big Apple.  It's not that Johnson pitched poorly; he won 17 games each year, and while his 5.00 ERA in 2006 was bad, it was in a league with an average ERA of 4.56.

Igawa: The Real Deal  —  As you may remember, a couple months ago I enlisted Mike Plugh of Canyon of Heroes to write a piece on Dice-K, giving you more insight into the guy than any of the Japarazzi have done.  Well despite being sidetracked by the birth of his son, Mike was kind enough …

Mulder's time in St. Louis may be marked over  —  This is the week that could help define the defending world champion St. Louis Cardinals in 2007: Free-agent pitcher Mark Mulder will decide whether he will pitch this summer for the Cardinals, Texas or Cleveland by Wednesday or Thursday, his agent, Gregg Clifton, said Monday.

Categorizing Pitchers (Part Two): Relievers  —  As a follow-up to yesterday's Categorizing Pitchers by Batted Ball Types and Strikeout Rates (which focused on starters), today's article is devoted exclusively to relievers.  —  The graph below includes strikeout and groundball data …

Jason Johnson to pitch in Japan next season  —  The free-agent market is thriving even for struggling pitchers headed to Japan.  —  Right-hander Jason Johnson, who was 3-12 with a 6.35 ERA with three clubs last season, has agreed to a one-year, $3 million contract with the Seibu Lions, FOXSports.com has learned.

South Side 'back to normal'  —  Out at the offices on West 35th Street in Chicago, Kenny Williams "crawled out from under the rock I've been under the past couple weeks" to discover the locals thought a lot more of him last winter.  —  A baseball general manager always looks smarter standing next to a World Series trophy.

The Path to Cooperstown Through the Middle Infield  —  This afternoon, the baseball writers will announce their votes for the Hall of Fame.  One middle infielder, Cal Ripken, will surely be inducted.  Three others—Alan Trammell, Dave Concepcion, and Tony Fernandez—are on the ballot.

A's sign Perez to one-year deal  —  OAKLAND — Infielder Antonio Perez signed a one-year contract Monday for about $500,000, the second of nine arbitration-eligible players on the A's roster to agree to terms.  Backup catcher Adam Melhuse agreed last week.  —  In addition, the A's signed …

Bucs conduct informal workouts  —  Manager Jim Tracy didn't see the need for a structured minicamp this offseason, so the Pirates yesterday began holding informal workouts at PNC Park.  —  "You've got to give (the players) some rope," Tracy said Monday.  "I want them to be very, very fresh on Feb. 16."

Jays sign veteran Thomson, re-sign Frasor  —  SHI DIVIDI  —  The Toronto Blue Jays added another pitcher to the mix for their starting rotation, rolling the dice on free agent right-hander John Thomson.  —  Thomson gets a $500,000 (all figures U.S.), one-year deal plus incentives …

Barrett learning from a Cubs great  —  Current Chicago backstop training with former catcher Davis  —  Michael Barrett was talking to former Cubs catcher Jody Davis about how he wanted to be able to start 130 games in the upcoming 2007 season.  —  Davis just laughed.