New York Yankees upset with Alex Rodriguez, and YES coverage lets it show  —  Certain members of the Yankees high command are very, very angry with Alex Rodriguez.  —  No one likes being deceived, especially these suits.  They are furious over A-Rod hanging them out to dry …

AL East grabs top three spots in ranking of the general managers … No one has as much control over a team's fate as the general manager.  A good one can thwart a dimwit owner, and a great one can win with a low payroll.  Yet there's no reliable way to tell the good ones from the bad ones.

Lovie Smith flies to Charlotte for Peppers  —  Bears coach Lovie Smith arrived in Charlotte early Friday morning and is expected to return to Chicago later in the day with Julius Peppers and his agent, Carl Carey.  —  No team was allowed to have contact with the defensive end until …

Mets Sign Kiko Calero  —  The Mets signed Kiko Calero to a minor league deal worth up to $1.5MM.  He earns $850K if he makes the team, with another $650K available in incentives.  There is no opt-out if the Mets send him to the minors.  —  Adam Rubin of the New York Daily News tweeted news of the deal …

Dolphins to make strong offer for Dansby  —  Sun Sentinel  —  Call it the changing of the linebackers.  —  Joey Porter is on his way out the door, and free agent Karlos Dansby apparently is on his way in.  —  The Dolphins are expected to announce Porter's release Friday …

Milton Bradley: Blame Chicago for struggles, not me  —  Milton Bradley said unrealistic expectations and poor communication, and not the player himself, were to blame for his struggles during his one season with the Chicago Cubs.  —  In an interview with The New York Times, Bradley …

Spring Training Game 2: Yankees at Phillies  —  YANKEES  —  PHILLIES  —  WEATHER: Pretty much the same as yesterday, but probably a little more sunny and not quite as windy.  Temperatures are supposed to be in the upper 50s.  —  UMPIRES: HP Dan Iassogna, 1B Eric Cooper, 2B Phil Cuzzi, 3B Chad Fairchild

GM Moore confident Royals going in right direction  —  SURPRISE, ARIZ. (AP)  —  Nearly four years after Dayton Moore was hired to turn the Kansas City Royals around, they still aren't turned.  —  Judged solely by wins and losses, last year was even a step backward.

Beckett aims to live down in the zone  —  Ace hopes to give improved infield defense plenty of work  —  FORT MYERS, Fla. — Red Sox ace Josh Beckett has a geographical goal for his fastball this season, one he wants to start setting in motion during Spring Training.

CC says his delivery was “so-so”  —  CC Sabathia wasn't thrilled with his first spring start, pitching two innings against the Phillies this afternoon at Bright House Field.  Sabathia allowed two hits and walked two in a pair of scoreless frames.  —  “My delivery was so-so,” he said.

Introducing THT Forecasts  —  Just in time for the start of Spring Training, I'm excited to present to you the newest Hardball Times offering—THT Forecasts.  —  In a partnership with Brian Cartwright, the brilliant inventor of the Oliver projection system, we have produced forecasts for over 7,000 major and minor league players.

NY Yankees manager Joe Girardi says OBP biggest key to hitting second in lineup … TAMPA, Fla. — Maybe Joe Girardi wasn't in the mood to name names on Wednesday afternoon.  But it wasn't hard to decipher his message.  —  For instance, Girardi never spoke the name of who he described only as the short …

Zito plunks Fielder as payback for walk-off antics … SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — The first pitch of the spring to Milwaukee Brewers first baseman Prince Fielder landed directly in the middle of his back.  —  It wasn't due to a lack of control on the part of San Francisco Giants left-hander Barry Zito.

Spring brings all sorts of new MLB looks  —  Over the course of a nine-year career that has spanned 5,417 plate appearances, Adam Dunn has put down exactly two sacrifice bunts.  But there he was the other day, practicing his bunting in Nationals camp.  —  The spectacle of an elite slugger brushing …

Book Review: Evaluating Baseball's Managers  —  Book breaks new ground on ranking managers  —  Evaluating Baseball's Managers: A History and Analysis of Performance in the Major Leagues, 1876-2008  —  By Chris Jaffe  —  McFarland (www.mcfarlandpub.com), 2010  —  List Price: $39.95

Belatedly, Voter Explains Why He Chose Cabrera Over Mauer for M.V.P.  —  PEORIA, Ariz. - When the Twins' Joe Mauer accepted his American League Most Valuable Player award at the New York baseball writers' dinner in January, he joked in his speech that he should have had a better series in Seattle.