Players may squash trip  —  Spring trek to Japan jeopardized by Sox  —  Johnny Damon will be the Yankees leadoff hitter and left fielder.  (FILE/ASSOCIATED PRESS)  —  Text size - +  —  ORLANDO, Fla. - While Major League Baseball is pushing hard toward Boston and Oakland playing in Tokyo March 22 …

Cabrera's status a hot topic at meetings  —  LIKE THIS STORY?  —  ORLANDO, Fla. - The Marlins are almost certain to trade third baseman Miguel Cabrera.  The question is where.  —  The Cabrera talks intensified at the general managers' meetings on Wednesday, with the Angels emerging as a particularly intriguing possibility.

Red Sox sit down with Boras  —  Agent pitches Rodriguez to Epstein at meetings  —  ORLANDO, Fla. - Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein and his staff headed into a meeting with agent Scott Boras last night as good listeners.  —  There was no need to jump feetfirst into the Alex Rodriguez sweepstakes.

Twins seem willing to part with pitching  —  The team has plenty of good, young arms, so teams such as the Padres and Devil Rays might deal talented hitters.  —  ORLANDO - The San Diego Padres are one of several teams that have expressed interest in the Twins' young starting pitchers this week at the general managers meetings.

Nationals target Gomez, Pelfrey  —  Outfielder, righty would help add youth to roster  —  WASHINGTON — The Nationals are not close to making any deals at the General Managers Meetings in Orlando, Fla., but, according to a baseball source, the team has its sights on Mets outfielder Carlos Gomez and right-hander Mike Pelfrey.

Damon meets with Girardi, Cashman, likely will stay  —  Johnny Damon waits for a decision by the umpires about his first inning home run.  (Newsday/Paul J. Bereswill / October 4, 2007)  —  ORLANDO, Fla. - With the general managers' meetings here a "12-minute" drive from his house, Johnny Damon met Joe Girardi for breakfast yesterday.

Posada and Rivera at Top of Yanks' List  —  The Yankees are preparing new offers to their top free agents, Jorge Posada and Mariano Rivera, in an effort to sign them before other teams can negotiate with them.  —  "The offers are going to be very generous offers," the senior vice president Hank Steinbrenner …

Brian Cashman: Jason Giambi will play some first base  —  LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - Brian Cashman has been hard at work trying to figure out what to do at third base next season.  First base, however, is not taking up much of his time.  —  The Yankees' GM said yesterday that he expects Jason Giambi …

Runner's Reluctance - Part One  —  Sometimes I think most baseball strategy has been figured out thanks to sabermetricians like you and me.  Then I discover that a major facet of the game is being mismanaged at a shocking rate.  —  Let me explain.  I recently undertook a study to analyze …

Rogers to test free-agent market  —  Veteran southpaw hasn't ruled out return to Detroit  —  DETROIT — The Tigers received the answer they hoped to hear from Kenny Rogers, at least in terms of whether he wants to pitch again.  Now, they're worried about where he'll pitch again …