Top News:
Gordon Edes / ESPN:
Red Sox face competition for Beltre — The Boston Red Sox have made an offer to free-agent third baseman Adrian Beltre, according to a major league source, but are facing competition from other teams, a list that could include the Orioles, Athletics and Angels.
Discussion:
MetsBlog.com, Boston Globe, Over the Monster, SFGate, Circling The Bases and Twinkie Town
RELATED:
Jon Heyman / Sports Illustrated:
Beltre closing in on deal with Red Sox — Third baseman Adrian Beltre is close to a deal with the Red Sox, SI.com has learned. — Terms aren't known, but the contract is believed to be for at least two years and include a player opt-out option that could make Beltre a free agent again next year if he chooses.
Peter Abraham / Boston Globe:
Red Sox agree to deal with Beltre — The Red Sox have agreed on a deal with third baseman Adrian Beltre, a source told the Globe. The deal is for one year with Beltre holding an option for the second year. — Peter Gammons is reporting that Beltre would be paid $9 million in 2010.
Fox Sports:
Plenty of talent still up for grabs — for the right price — The holidays are over, but Baseball's shopping season is not. — More than 100 free agents remain unsigned, including several of the biggest names — and virtually all of Scott Boras' clients. — Spring training begins in approximately six weeks.
RELATED:
Tim Dierkes / MLB Rumors:
Remaining Top 50 Free Agents — MLBTR's Top 50 Free Agents list was published on November 9th. 25 of those 50 players have signed. Here's a list of the remaining 25, with fresh guesses on where they might land. — 1. Matt Holliday - Cardinals. The market for Holliday this winter proved smaller …
Sports Illustrated:
Explaining my Hall of Fame ballot … Normally at this time I reveal my Hall of Fame ballot. This time, I'll spend most of the time explaining it. — Already, my ballot has been met with considerable ridicule on Twitter and other cyberspace spots. And at the risk of further ridicule …
RELATED:
Jim Caple / MLB:Bert Blyleven should finally get Hall of Fame call
Discussion:
Federal Baseball, Bless You Boys, Amazin' Avenue, Purple Row, Bluebird Banter, Halos Heaven, Red Reporter, Brew Crew Ball and Gaslamp Ball
Mike Puma / New York Post:
Mets hold breath for Bay's physical — Jason Bay could officially become a Met today. — The free-agent outfielder, who last week agreed to a four-year deal worth $66 million with the Mets — there is a vesting option for a fifth season — is expected to be in Manhattan today for a full physical …
Discussion:
MetsBlog.com, Faith and Fear in Flushing, Mets Merized Online, Mets Fever, Circling The Bases and TedQuarters.net
RELATED:
Jason Reid / Redskins Insider:
Shanahan could be introduced Tuesday — Mike Shanahan is expected to be named head coach of the Redskins, according to sources in the organization, and, barring unforeseen glitches, will likely be introduced in a news conference Tuesday. — That timeline makes sense, they said …
Discussion:
DC Pro Sports Report
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Chico Harlan / Nationals Journal:
Q&A with Matt Capps — Matt Capps agreed to a one-year, $3.5 million deal with the Nats some time around 1 a.m. on Christmas Eve. He was visiting family in Asheville, N.C., at the time. Hours later, he went to the local mall in hopes of buying a Nats hat at the Lids store. But they were already sold out.
Discussion:
Circling The Bases
Alden Gonzalez / MLB.com:
Finalists for Frick Award announced — Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum to name winner Feb. 1 — The 10 finalists for the 2010 Ford C. Frick Award were announced on Monday, a slate of beloved baseball broadcasters that consists of Billy Berroa, Skip Caray, Tom Cheek, Jacques Doucet …
Kevin Goldstein / Baseball Prospectus:
The Year and the Decade to Come — First off, I hope everyone had a fantastic holiday season. As it turned out, 2009 was a successful year for Prospectus Entertainment Ventures, but this coming year has the potential to be the biggest for us since the year we went to a premium product …
Discussion:
Mack's Mets, Drunk Jays Fans, Lone Star Ball, THE BOOK, Bucs Dugout and Baseball Daily Digest
Bob Klapisch / NorthJersey.com:
New Year's wishes for baseball fans — So you've got images of pitchers and catchers clogging up your neuro-processor. You're counting down the days (admit it, hours) before CC Sabathia and Johan Santana deliver their first fastballs in Florida. Waiting out January's odyssey is torture, but you can't beat the payoff.
Maury Brown / The Biz of Baseball:
Peter Gammons' MLB Network Debut on Weds. — Hall of Fame award-winning baseball writer Peter Gammons will make his debut on MLB Network with the 2010 Baseball Hall of Fame Election announcement show on Wednesday, January 6. MLB Network's Bob Costas, Harold Reynolds, Matt Vasgersian …
Discussion:
Over the Monster
Troy Renck / All Things Rockies:
Rockies finalize one-year deal with Olivo — DENVER — Yorvit Torrealba's time with the Rockies is over. After unable to reach terms on a two-year contract, the club moved on Monday, signing free agent Miguel Olivo to a one-year deal with a club option. — Terms of the deal were not disclosed …
Jay / Fack Youk:
Is Javier Vazquez Unclutch? — Throughout his career it has been intimated that Javier Vazquez has the stuff of an ace but the track record of a back of the rotation starter. He has excellent peripheral numbers (3.45 K/BB), a better than league average ERA (107 ERA+) and averages well over 200 innings per season.
