Another stealth pursuit for Red Sox?  —  The Red Sox, who maintained radio silence before signing free-agent pitcher John Lackey and were almost as circumspect in their pursuit of free-agent third baseman Adrian Beltre before signing him, are conducting another stealth operation …

Cust re-signs with A's  —  I just heard from a source close to the negotiations that DH Jack Cust will return to the A's on a one-year deal worth just over $2.5 million, with incentives that can push the total to close to $3 million.  —  So the A's will have at least some pop in their lineup next year …

Papelbon's recurring nightmare  —  Blown save to Angels that ended last season serves as motivation  —  Jonathan Papelbon hasn't forgotten the way his 2009 season ended, walking off the mound as a loser in October for the first time in his career.  —  “I got a copy of it,” he said …

REPORT: SERIES BETWEEN MLB, JAPANESE CHAMPS A POSSIBILITY  —  A series which would see the best in baseball from Japan and the United States square off, may not be far away.  —  If it were up to Nippon Professional Baseball commissioner Ryozo Kato, the two countries baseball champions …

Hall and Beltre having physicals  —  Recent Red Sox acquisitions Adrian Beltre and Bill Hall are in Boston today having physicals.  It's expected one or both will be introduced at a press conference either later today or tomorrow.  —  The veteran Hall, who arrived in Boston late yesterday …

Tony La Russa's ‘dream’: Mark McGwire as pinch hitter  —  Mark McGwire is returning to baseball this season as the St. Louis Cardinals' hitting coach.  Could he also be making a cameo as a player, too?  —  In an interview with the Contra Costa Times, Cardinals manager Tony La Russa mentioned …

Draft Grades, 2005-08  —  Below are the latest Draft Report Card grades for each team from 2005-08, which are explained in detail in the 2010 Prospect Handbook.  Grades are based solely on the quality of the draftees signed, and not on the number of picks added/lost through free-agent compensation …

Hold your head up, Dewey Evans  —  There were 539 members of the BBWAA who cast ballots for the Hall of Fame and I would imagine there were 539 different methods used to determine who deserved a vote.  Based on the results yesterday, some of those methods include large quantities of bourbon.

Buzz: The Mets plan for Pitching  —  In case you missed it...  Earlier today, in this post, I revealed the Mets interest in free-agent RHP John Smoltz, who is willing to pitch in the bullpen, as well as how the team hopes to approach free-agent RHP Joel Pineiro, who may need to settle on a short-term deal...

Webb eyeing rebound after lost 2009  —  Righty missed nearly all of last season, but is confident he'll be healthy again in '10  —  With all due respect to John Lackey, Randy Wolf, Rich Harden, Joel Pineiro, Jason Marquis, Doug Davis and Jon Garland, this will not go down as the free-agent winter …

Ask Boswell: Mike Shanahan, Redskins, Gilbert Arenas suspension, MLB Hall of Fame and more  —  The transcript follows.  —  Arlington, Va.: Mr. Boswell:  —  I think Gilbert Arenas is great.  I love his play, love that he's a goofball, love that he's different from so many milquetoast professional athletes …