Ron Gardenhire, Bud Black honored  —  NEW YORK — San Diego's Bud Black has barely beaten out Cincinnati's Dusty Baker as the NL Manager of the Year, while Minnesota's Ron Gardenhire has won the AL award.  —  Black topped Baker by one point in results released Wednesday by the Baseball Writers' Association of America.

Source: New York Yankees, Derek Jeter disagree on Captain's worth  —  Source says Jeter, Bombers not on same page when it comes to Derek's dollars  —  ORLANDO, Fla. — If the Yankees could get Derek Jeter to agree to a three-year contract for $21 million per year, they would sign off on it today.

Albert Pujols: The First $40-Million Man  —  It looks like the St. Louis Cardinals and Albert Pujols are looking to sign an extension that will keep him in St. Louis for life.  Jon Heyman writes that Albert Pujols is looking for a contract similar to Alex Rodriguez's ten-year, $275 million deal that he signed with the Yankees in 2008.

Blue Jays On Verge Of Acquiring Rajai Davis  —  The Blue Jays are on the verge of acquiring outfielder Rajai Davis from the Athletics, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.  Minor league reliever Trystan Magnuson is one of the players heading to Oakland in the deal, MLBTR has learned.

Rockies inquiring about Justin Upton  —  ORLANDO — The Rockies have broadened their scope in attempt to land a right-handed bat and starting pitcher, inquiring about Arizona outfielder Justin Upton and White Sox right-hander Gavin Floyd, according to multiple major league sources.

Report: A's offer Adrian Beltre a five-year, $64 million deal  —  Oakland has wasted little time making moves this offseason, bidding $17 million for the negotiating rights to Japanese pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma, trading Vin Mazzaro and Justin Marks to the Royals for David DeJesus …

Jorge De La Rosa Rumors: Wednesday  —  5:30pm: The Nationals, Pirates, and Orioles have been the most aggressive De La Rosa suitors, tweets Renck, while the Brewers are no longer in the mix.  —  4:22pm: The Nationals met today with Jorge de la Rosa's agent Bobby Barad, tweets ESPN's Jerry Crasnick.

Results of today's Manager Poll on MetsBlog  —  I know Jeff Wilpon, Sandy Alderson, and more or less every one working at the Mets, is aware of how some fans feel about Backman.  Also, it should be noted that ‘some’ fans want Backman, not all.  The thing is, wisely, they're …

Little opposition to expanded playoffs  —  ORLANDO, Fla. — Little opposition has emerged to Major League Baseball expanding its playoffs for 2012 as the sport's top officials discussed the concept during two days of meetings.  —  While commissioner Bud Selig has yet to formally propose adding …

Josh Willingham unlikely to receive extension  —  The Nationals have three options this offseason with left fielder Josh Willingham, who is entering his final year of arbitration and will be a free agent following the 2011 season.  They could sign him to a multi-year contract extension …

White Sox Willing To Discuss Gavin Floyd  —  The White Sox are willing to discuss righty Gavin Floyd, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post.  I'm sure the return would have to be significant, as Floyd is locked up affordably through 2012 with a club option for '13.

Numbers tell surprising free-agent story  —  Sure, Lee, Rivera and Soriano are recongizable, but don't forget these other arms … You don't need Rumblings and Grumblings to tell you that Cliff Lee, Mariano Rivera and Rafael Soriano are the three most ballyhooed free-agent arms that money can buy this winter.

Tigers, right-hander Joaquin Benoit nearing deal  —  The Detroit Tigers are nearing a multi-year agreement with right-hander Joaquin Benoit, major-league sources told FOXSports.com.  —  The deal could be for as long as three years, sources say.  —  Benoit, 33, is one of the more intriguing arms in a deep class of relief pitchers.

Photo: Alderson, DePodesta and Ricciardi at GM Meetings  —  murdertron3000  —  Wondering if I am the only one with the theme from Reservoir Dogs going through their head now.  —  C Dubb  —  Holy crap, you beat me to it!