Aging core and injuries rank as biggest concerns for New York Yankees moving forward  —  I don't think I'll ever understand why Johnny Damon and the Yankees couldn't find a middle ground to keep him in pinstripes, but for all the hysteria over his departure, let's be clear:

Lemieux, Penguins co-owner offer to buy Pirates  —  Pirates downplay recent meeting; Nutting repeats: ‘Team not for sale’  —  Mario Lemieux and Ron Burkle, co-owners of the Penguins, recently made an unsolicited offer to buy the Pirates in a face-to-face meeting with that team's owner …

Harper shows flair in CSN debut  —  Top prospect, 17, displays versatility for big crowd, scouts  —  Washington Nationals scout Jeff Zona was happy to talk baseball during top-ranked College of Southern Nevada's season opener against Arizona Western on Friday — so long as the discussion wasn't about Bryce Harper.

Jane Jarvis, Player of Jazz and Mets Music, Dies at 94  —  Jane Jarvis, who brought a jazz sensibility to unlikely places as an organist for the New York Mets and a programmer for Muzak, died on Monday at the Lillian Booth Actors' Home in Englewood, N.J. She was 94.  —  Her death was confirmed by her son, Brian.

Rockies one of the finalists for Mora  —  With Orlando Cabrera likely to accept the Reds' offer of a starting shortstop job, the Rockies have become a finalist for Melvin Mora's services today.  His agent confirmed this afternoon that the field has narrowed for Mora, and that the Rockies are strongly in the mix.

Lincoln in the 5th spot?  Alonso at catcher  —  These come from the sometimes-managers-say-the-darnedest- things file.  Dusty Baker was asked about the fifth spot in the rotation Saturday at the Select-A-Seat event at Great American Ball Park.  —  In his response he mentioned that Mike Lincoln would be among the candidates.

2010 Projected Player Salaries - Texas Rangers  —  In our continuing look at projected roster salaries for the 30 clubs in Major League Baseball (see Yankees, Braves, and Red Sox), we continue with the Texas Rangers.  —  With the Rangers reaching a one-year, $2.245 million contract …

Races look great on paper  —  Statistics project a fascinating year in AL East, NL West  —  This is Part 1 of a two-part look previewing the season ahead of Spring Training.  —  In New York, Yankees fans called talk shows and claimed they were canceling season-ticket plans in protest …

Top 2011 sleeper prospects by team  —  As I did last year, I'm finishing off this year's top 100 prospects package with a look at one player from each organization who might move up into the top 100 next offseason.  The emphasis is on guys who might jump into the middle or even the top part of the rankings …

News from the Hot Stove Luncheon  —  The Nationals held their annual Hot Stove Luncheon for season ticket-holders today, and while such events aren't known for their newsmaking value, this one actually delivered some: Adam Dunn and the Nationals have begun preliminary talks on a contract extension.

Mariners sign Byrnes as their right-handed bat  —  Seattle Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik didn't wait long to fulfill his promise to add a right-handed bat to the roster, signing veteran outfielder Eric Byrnes to a one-year deal Friday.  —  Byrnes, 33, is a career .260 hitter …