Jonathan Papelbon pops off on Manny Ramirez  —  + Recent Articles + Recent Blog Entries + Email  —  FORT MYERS - Jonathan Papelbon [stats] minced few words about the dark, final days of Manny Ramirez [stats]' tenure with the Red Sox [team stats] in an interview in the April issue of Esquire magazine.

Inbox: Time to bring back Pedro?  —  Beat reporter Marty Noble answers Mets fans' questions  —  I can't believe it's come to this, but I'm actually coming around to the idea of re-signing Pedro Martinez.  At first, I was adamantly against re-signing him because I wanted to see Jon Niese in the fifth spot in the rotation.

Perez out at least three months  —  Update 10:32 An obviously disappointed OF Fernando Perez, out at least three months with a dislocated left wrist, tried to take the setback in stride, but said he learned a valuable lesson in the process.  —  Perez said he knew instantly …

Thames sidelined by strained oblique  —  Tigers outfielder out a week; Treanor also taking breather  —  LAKELAND, Fla. — Tigers outfielder Marcus Thames is expected to miss about a week after he was diagnosed Wednesday with a strained abdominal muscle.  Backup catcher Matt Treanor …

Piazza vs. Bench vs. Pudge  —  In case you missed it, Sean Smith introduced his historical WAR database last week, providing seasonal wins-above-replacement values for every significant player since 1955 (the retrosheet era).  Since he was kind enough to include a measure of catcher defense …

McGehee stating his case  —  By Tom Haudricourt of the Journal Sentinel  —  Glendale, Ariz. - Even if Bill Hall recovers from his calf injury in time to be the Brewers' starting third baseman, as expected, there might be room on the roster for Casey McGehee.

10 Reds prospects to watch  —  Bumper crop of middle infielders maturing on the farm  —  With the 2009 season quickly approaching, MLB.com takes a look at 10 of the Reds' most intriguing prospects that you should keep an eye on.  —  Yonder Alonso, 1B: The seventh overall pick in 2008 out of Miami …

Harper: Sabathia is bigger than life but maybe not Yankee concerns  —  LAKELAND, Fla. - CC Sabathia didn't forget how to pitch, let's get that out of the way first.  Getting smacked around in early March is practically a rite of spring for veteran pitchers, and hardly cause for concern.

Texas Rangers believe stable batting order will help the win column  —  SURPRISE, Ariz. — It seems like such a simple thing.  —  A player walks into the locker room, sees where he's batting in the lineup and goes from there.  —  But for the Rangers in 2008, picking a regular batting order was anything but simple.

3 UP: Manny, Coke and Maine  —  1. A person close to Manny Ramirez said that Scott Boras considers the contract Ramirez just signed a one-year contract, and that the $20 million player option for 2010 is a safety net against injury or an off-year in 2009 for Ramirez.

HoJo survives because he's a hit with Mets players  —  PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. - - When the Mets decided to clean house in the midnight massacre of last June, one of the coaches who escaped the purge was Howard Johnson, whose bond with the franchise was a lifeline the others did not have.

Nats' assistant GM discusses increased role since Bowden's resignation  —  Last Wednesday, the Nationals decided that their general manager position will remain vacant for the foreseeable future.  —  However, assistant general manager Mike Rizzo has principal responsibilities when it comes …