Mets, Maine agree to terms on contract  —  Feliciano, Francoeur, Green, Pagan remain without deals  —  NEW YORK — The Mets agreed to terms with John Maine on Friday evening, avoiding arbitration with the right-hander moments after he and four other Mets filed for the process.

Let's quiet the Damon talk  —  As we head toward the weekend, I still haven't gained any reason to think any different about the possibility of the Braves signing Johnny Damon.  —  There's no doubt that Damon could benefit the Braves from an offensive perspective.

Kemp Signs Two-Year Deal To Avoid Arbitration  —  The Dodgers avoided arbitration with Matt Kemp today and signed him to a two-year contract worth nearly $11MM.  The deal, which the sides have been working on all week, is now official, tweets Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times.

Source: Oakland A's get Kevin Kouzmanoff in four-player trade  —  After coming up short in a bid to sign free agent Adrian Beltre, the Oakland Athletics filled their third base void Friday by acquiring Kevin Kouzmanoff in a four-player trade with the San Diego Padres, a baseball source confirmed.

How about Baldelli?  —  While we still believe that Xavier Nady would ultimately be the best solution to fill the Yankees' need for a corner outfielder/right-handed hitter, Rocco Baldelli might be the next best choice (considering the Yanks' need and their hard-line budget).

Griffin: Jays overcame some tough odds  —  On Dec. 12, the Blue Jays were within 48 hours of keeping Roy Halladay for the 2010 season and having to settle for two compensation draft picks in the June 2011 draft.  —  The Phillies' offer of Kyle Drabek, Michael Taylor and Travis D'Arnaud …

Incentives for J.J.  —  There is some extra incentive for Josh Johnson and the Marlins to have a good season.  —  Johnson, who reached agreement Thursday on a four-year, $39 million contract, has some attractive bonuses attached to the deal.  —  If the soon-to-be 26-year-old wins the Cy Young Award, he will collect a $500,000 bonus.

‘Fakes, phonies, creeps, cheaters’  —  (J.B. Forbes/PD and Otto Gruele/Allsport)  —  Former Cardinals slugger Jack Clark apparently isn't enamored of the current hitting coach, especially in light of Mark McGwire's admission a few days ago that he had used steroids in 1998-99 when he played …

Tribe signs Redmond to be backup backstop  —  The Indians have signed 38-year-old Mike Redmond to a one-year contract to be their backup catcher.  It is their first Major League free agent signing this offseason, and it brings their 40-man roster total to 39.

Closer's in.  Now what?  Damon?  —  Now that the Tigers have agreed to terms with closer Jose Valverde, they're expected to take one more look at upgrading their offense.  If they're going to make an upgrade, it's most likely going to be in the outfield.If they're going to go for an outfielder …

Sources: La. Tech's Dooley on verge of becoming Tennessee Volunteers' coach … Tennessee officials flew into Ruston, La., on Friday afternoon to visit with Louisiana Tech coach Derek Dooley in a meeting that could finalize the deal with Dooley as the Vols' next head coach.