St. Louis Cardinals close to signing Felipe Lopez  —  • The St. Louis Cardinals are close to agreement with free agent utility player Felipe Lopez on a one-year contract that would offer infield depth and add a much-needed lefthanded bat, sources close to negotiations confirmed Friday.

Blocked by Jeter, a Backup Finds Other Work  —  TAMPA, Fla. — Literally and figuratively, Mick Kelleher was once in Ramiro Pena's position.  As a shortstop in the St. Louis Cardinals organization in the late 1960s and early '70s, Kelleher played four years in the minors behind the incumbent, Dal Maxvill.

Thames can opt out  —  In a way, veteran Marcus Thames and Rule 5 pick Jamie Hoffmann are in the same boat this spring.  They're both right-handed outfielders who will either make the major league roster, or likely won't be in the Yankees organization at all.

Break up the (AL) East  —  Ken Rosenthal has been the senior baseball writer for FOXSports.com since Aug. 2005.  He appears weekly on MLB on FOX.  —  As a baseball official says, ask five people for opinions on realignment, and you'll get six ideas.  —  I'm not going to pretend that change would be easily accomplished.

NY Yankees pitcher A.J. Burnett worked on changeup with longtime reliever Arthur Rhodes … TAMPA, Fla. — Encouraged by a full season of watching CC Sabathia dominated hitters with his changeup, Yankees pitcher A.J. Burnett spent his entire offseason trying to improve his own version of the pitch.

Wright-Bay? ...  Or Bay-Wright?  —  Jerry Manuel said Friday that he's unsure about whether it should be David Wright-Jason Bay in the Nos. 4 and 5 slots, or vice versa, but he envisions the Opening Day lineup like this:  —  Pagan, cf  —  Castillo, 2b  —  Reyes, ss  —  Wright, 3b / Bay, lf

PADRES: Gonzalez an asset that needs protection  —  LACKING LINEUP SUPPORT, SLUGGER LED NL IN WALKS LAST SEASON  —  PEORIA, Ariz. — No heavy research is needed to discover the key to the Padres' offensive success this season.  —  Protect Adrian Gonzalez, or else.  —  It's that simple.

Red Sox Still In On Ruiz  —  Earlier this week, the Blue Jays appeared to be taking the lead in the race to sign Cuban first base prospect Jose Julio Ruiz.  But don't count out the Red Sox yet, says an article in Diario Libre (story in Spanish), a daily newspaper in the Dominican Republic capital …

Posada on the 5th starter race: Bring your A-Game now  —  Joba Chamberlain and Phil Hughes each threw 30-something pitches in their live BP session today, which we'll detail in a moment.  —  Jorge Posada caught Hughes and hit against Joba (who threw a sharp slider that grazed off Posada's front foot) …

Phillies' payroll projected at $136.55 million  —  Howard, Halladay club's highest-paid players for 2010  —  CLEARWATER, Fla. — The Phillies' projected Opening Day payroll is at least $136.55 million.  —  The Phillies recently inked their remaining unsigned players who are not eligible for salary arbitration.

Mariners completely overhauling their approach to fitness and training  —  Just got out of the Mariners weight room down here, which, I have to say, is almost completely devoid of weights.  The Mariners, as we mentioned yesterday on the blog, have signed a three-year contract with Dr. Marcus Elliott …

Why Cards must keep Pujols, and why it looks like they will … JUPITER, Fla. — Baseball executives agree on a couple things regarding superstar Albert Pujols, the Cardinals and their future together.  —  1. Pujols and the Cardinals have a very good chance to stay together beyond 2011 …