Top News:
NY Daily News:
Red Sox made seven-year offer to Cliff Lee to raise price for Yankees on coveted free agent: source — The Yankees are locked in a waiting game as Cliff Lee mulls his potential landing spot and the Bombers may have the Red Sox to blame for prolonging the process.
Discussion:
Fenway West and Full Count
RELATED:
Evan Drellich / MLB.com:
Crawford deal won't turn Cameron into castoff — Veteran will serve as key backup to injury-prone outfielders — BOSTON — Five minutes after signing Carl Crawford, Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein called Mike Cameron and told him he's still more than wanted in Boston.
Discussion:
The LoHud Yankees Blog, Lookout Landing and MLB Rumors
Brian Costa / Wall Street Journal:
Cliff Lee and Texas Tax Rates — The Texas Rangers have conceded that they probably cannot outbid the Yankees for Cliff Lee, but they may have one small advantage. Because there is no state income tax in Texas, there is a chance the Rangers could effectively match the Yankees' offer without actually matching it.
Discussion:
Al's Ramblings
NY Daily News:
Madden: Werth wins, many lose at meetings … Say It Ain't So — “If someone accuses me of not being born here I can go to my filing cabinet and pick up my real birth certificate. The man (President Obama) has dodged everything. Why? Because he's hiding something.”
Thomas Boswell / Washington Post:
Boston Red Sox' contract to Carl Crawford raises questions — With the $142 million deal they gave to Carl Crawford, who has spent nine seasons proving that Fenway Park damages every part of his game, the Boston Red Sox just made the Washington Nationals look smart.
Discussion:
baseballmusings.com, Clubhouse Insider, Boston Globe, DRaysBay and The LoHud Yankees Blog
Mark Feinsand / NY Daily News:
Cliff Lee's waiting game may mean he's considering return to Texas …
Discussion:
The Joy of Sox and Texas Rangers
Marc Topkin / St. Petersburg Times:
Crawford: I wanted to stay in AL East, am willing to bat (or play) …
Gordon Edes / ESPN:
Boston Red Sox to announce Carl Crawford signing on Saturday
Discussion:
ESPN, HardballTalk, NESN.com and SOX & Dawgs
T.R. Sullivan / MLB.com:
Texas hold 'em: Ryan, Rangers waiting on Lee — ARLINGTON — Rangers president Nolan Ryan — Hall of Famer, no-hit king and baseball's all-time strikeout leader — is now just like everybody else. — Ryan is sitting around this weekend waiting for Cliff Lee to make a decision on where he will pitch next year.
Discussion:
HardballTalk, Bombers Beat and The LoHud Yankees Blog
RELATED:
Tom Spousta / Dallas Morning News:
Rangers manager Ron Washington on Cliff Lee: 'He'll be here' — Asked for his gut feeling about Cliff Lee remaining a Ranger, manager Ron Washington fired a fastball worthy of his coveted left-hander. — “He'll be here,” Washington said Saturday. — Lee might be keeping his skipper in suspense …
T.J. Simers / Los Angeles Times:
Dodgers play in a first-rate city with second-rate talent — Ned Colletti has it tough, but the truth is that Dodgers fans have it worse because they settle for a team with lesser talent. — GM Ned Colletti has repeatedly told us his hands are not tied because of the McCourt mess.
Discussion:
baseballmusings.com
RELATED:
Joe Strauss / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
Ryan draws interest from Twins — While the Cardinals have pressed to acquire two-time Gold Glover catcher Bengie Molina as backup to his younger brother Yadier, a move involving former starting shortstop Brendan Ryan may be closer. — The swirl of activity involving shortstops …
Discussion:
MLB Rumors, MLB Daily Dish and HardballTalk
David Lennon / Newsday:
Alderson happy not to scratch 7-year itch — By the end of last week's winter meetings, the conversation around the Mets switched from the players they failed to get this year to the players they might lose after next season because of the dizzying free-agent market.
Discussion:
MetsBlog.com
RELATED:
David Lennon / Newsday:
On the Mets beat — Winter Meetings Post-Mortem: Alderson, Reyes and Boof
Discussion:
MetsBlog.com
NY Daily News:
Government's seizure of Major League Baseball drug-testing records ruled unconstitutional — The government waged an epic legal battle and all it got out of it was Barry Bonds' urine. — Six-and-a-half years after federal agents seized Major League Baseball's drug-testing records …
Discussion:
Can't Stop The Bleeding
Ken Rosenthal / mlbbuzz:
Details of Arroyo's deferrals — For all the money getting spent this offseason, deferred salary is all the rage. — Recent free-agent signings by the Dodgers, White Sox and Cubs included deferred money, and the Reds' three-year, $35 million extension of right-hander Bronson Arroyo was particularly unique.
Discussion:
HardballTalk and Cincinnati Reds Blog
