Big Hurt decides to call it a career  —  Longtime White Sox star Thomas is 18th on home run list  —  The Big Hurt is calling it a career.  —  Longtime White Sox star slugger Frank Thomas, who is tied for 18th on the all-time Major League home run list with 521, told MLB.com on Thursday evening that he is officially retiring.

Sources: Tigers owner OKs two-year, $14M offer to Damon  —  Fox Sports  —  Tigers owner Mike Ilitch has authorized a two-year, $14 million offer to free-agent outfielder Johnny Damon, according to major-league sources.  —  Damon also is considering a one-year, $7 million proposal from the Tigers, one source said.

Big Ten should make a big splash and expand to 14 teams … With the latest report that the Big Ten is opening up discussions with Texas about possibly joining the conference, it got me thinking about what radical changes we might see from the Big Ten in the next couple years.

Bonderman wants back in on Detroit's power play  —  Almost two years have passed since Jeremy Bonderman could feel like he was really a part of what the Tigers were trying to accomplish, a part of the clubhouse.  If you're hurt and on the disabled list and unable to pitch, you keep your locker …

Red Sox ‘Truck Day’ has arrived!  —  The truck that will transport the Red Sox' gear to Fort Myers for spring training is sporting a new look.  It was outside Fenway early Friday morning, ready to be loaded.  (Steve Silva / Boston.com)  —  Sorry Punxsutawney Phil and your six-more-weeks …

Rangers prospect Danny Gutierrez suspended 50 games for testing positive for amphetamine Adderall  —  RHP Danny Gutierrez, whom the Rangers acquired from Kansas City last fall, has been suspended 50 games by Major League Baseball for testing positive for a banned substance.

Daniel Murphy's flaws at first base will test Mets announcer Keith Hernandez  —  There will come a time this season, in a crucial situation, when Mets first baseman Daniel Murphy makes an error.  In SportsNet New York's broadcast booth, Keith Hernandez will have something to say about it.

Minaya: Many battles to be won at spring training  —  The Mets are baseball's piñata.  They've made mistakes, and have been blasted, but when pitchers and catchers get together next week in Port St. Lucie, along with early arriving position players, one thing will be in the air that's been missing in past years: competition.

Tony Blengino on how the Mariners use statistics  —  I've been saving this one for more than two weeks now, ever since the Mariners had their spring-training luncheon in late January.  There was a flood of information that day, followed by a flood of news.  But now I finally …

Time to give Rockies their due  —  Colorado should not be overlooked as NL contender  —  They often go unnoticed because they play in Mountain Time, two zones removed from what their fans perceive as Eastern Bias Time.  It's taken years, from their rapid ascent to the playoffs in 1995 as the …