Top News:
Peter Abraham / The LoHud Yankees Blog:
Spring Game 10: Tigers at Yankees (with Alex Rodriguez updates including Hal Steinbrenner's comments) — YANKEES — Pitching tonight: CC Sabathia followed by Alfredo Aceves, Jose Veras, Steven Jackson, David Robertson and Anthony Claggett. — TIGERS — Raburn RF — Polanco 2B
Discussion:
River Avenue Blues, MY BASEBALL BIAS, The Yankee Scrolls, Pinstripe Alley, WasWatching.com and New York Times
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Joe Lapointe / New York Times:
Rodriguez May Opt for Surgery Sooner — TAMPA, Fla. — One day after the Yankees indicated that Alex Rodriguez would try to play the 2009 season with a torn labrum in his right hip, the tone of their outlook shifted unmistakably toward the more grim possibility of surgery sooner rather than later.
Discussion:
Baseball Musings
Buster Olney / ESPN.com:
Sources: Good chance Alex Rodriguez can play with injury for New York Yankees … Hip surgery is the worst-case scenario for Alex Rodriguez, but the specialist who examined the Yankees' third baseman earlier this week indicated there is a very good chance that Rodriguez could play the whole season with the labrum tear, sources say.
Ian O'Connor / NorthJersey.com:PINSTRIPE POSTS — O'Connor: Better off without A-Rod?
Discussion:
Hardball Times
Alan Schwarz / New York Times:
Cubs' Rising Star Steps Out of Crouch and Into the Lights — MESA, Ariz. — Geovany Soto went to high school in Puerto Rico, has lived in San Juan most of his life, and will play his next significant game this weekend for Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic.
Discussion:
Wrigleyville23
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Christian Red / NY Daily News:
Bernie Williams: A-Rod injury could be ‘blessing in disguise’ — SAN JUAN - Bernie Williams certainly knows about playing amid distractions after his 16 seasons on George Steinbrenner's Yankees, including the three years he was Alex Rodriguez's teammate. — There was A-Rod's infamous …
Discussion:
Sliding Into Home
Associated Press:
Sweeney finished playing, joins Dodgers' staff — PHOENIX (AP) — Mark Sweeney, whose 175 pinch hits rank second in major league history, announced his retirement Friday and joined manager Joe Torre's coaching staff with the Los Angeles Dodgers. — Only Lenny Harris had more pinch-hits …
Discussion:
Associated Press
Polls / Brew Beat:
Gagne to see Dr. Yocum, Crew season likely over — Eric Gagne will see noted orthopedist Lewis Yocum in Tempe, Ariz. on Saturday for a second opinion on his injured right shoulder. Whether or not Gagne opts for surgery, it appears extremely unlikely that he'll win a spot on the Brewers' big league roster.
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Darren Rovell / Sports Biz with Darren Rovell:
Major League Baseball Bans “A-Fraud” — Any fan hoping to make fun of New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez can no longer get a No. 13 Yankees jersey with the word “A-Fraud” on the back. — MLB.com has banned the new A-Rod nickname from the personalization feature on replica jerseys on MLB.com.
Associated Press:
Commish defends role steroids scandal again — PHOENIX (AP) — Baseball commissioner Bud Selig again defended his role in the sport's steroids scandal Friday, pointing to the players' union opposition to drug testing and a lack of curiosity by the media as the problem started to grow.
Polls / Brew Beat:
Emptying the notebook... - The Brewers' veterans are doing everything they can to make sure third base prospect Mat Gamel “gets” the enormity of the opportunity he's facing. Gamel, who is in his first big league camp, was a late arrival Friday morning apparently because his alarm clock failed …
Discussion:
MLB Rumors
Tangotiger / THE BOOK:
How much is a great fielder worth? 25 runs. — Here's one way to tell. — Last year in 2008, with Mark Ellis on the field — perhaps the best-fielding 2B of our generation — the A's allowed 457 runs while recording 3035 outs. This means they allowed 4.07 runs per game.
Adam Rubin / Surfing the Mets:
The wrap-up from Jupiter — The Mets beat the Cardinals, 5-4, Friday as Marlon Anderson's RBI single in the ninth scored Jose Valentin with the decisive run. Valentin went 3-for-4, while Anderson raised his spring average to .400 with a 2-for-2 game. — First-base ump Angel Hernandez gave …
Peter Schmuck / Baltimore Sun:
Cabrera eager for fresh start with Nationals — Ex-Orioles right-hander looking to find success in Washington — FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - When Manny Acta looks at new Washington Nationals pitcher Daniel Cabrera, he sees the same thing everyone in Baltimore has been looking at for the past five years.
