Top News:
Ben Nicholson-Smith / MLB Rumors:
Yankees To Sign Kevin Millwood — After an extended courtship, the Yankees signed Kevin Millwood to a minor league deal, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). Freddy Garcia or Bartolo Colon will still start the season as the Yankees' No. 5 starter behind C.C. Sabathia, Phil Hughes …
Discussion:
SBNation.com, Pinstriped Bible …, Pinstripe Alley, The LoHud Yankees Blog and New Jersey Online
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Drew Silva / HardballTalk:
Yanks nearing minor league deal with Kevin Millwood — From Jon Heyman of SI.com comes word that the Yankees are close to signing right-hander Kevin Millwood to a minor league contract. — Millwood, 36, had been holding out for a guaranteed big league roster spot, but it never came …
Discussion:
MLB Rumors, Bronx Baseball Daily, River Avenue Blues, IT IS HIGH! and It's About The Money
Bill Ladson / MLB.com:
Riggleman juggles batting order — LAKELAND, Fla. — More than a month after saying Jayson Werth would hit third and Ryan Zimmerman cleanup, Nationals manager Jim Riggleman has decided to move Werth up to the second spot in the order and Zimmerman back to his normal spot in the three-hole.
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Jason Beck / MLB.com:
Numbers aside, Porcello confident about arsenal — LAKELAND, Fla. — The numbers won't show it, and neither did several of the pitches the Nationals hit Thursday night. But Rick Porcello feels good about where he's at with his pitches. — “I'm pretty close,” he said after five innings in Detroit's 5-2 loss to Washington.
Discussion:
Federal Baseball
Scott Lauber / Boston Herald:
Clay Buchholz takes aim at total innings goal — An eye on 200 — JUPITER, Fla. — For all he achieved last year in his first full major league season, from the microscopic 2.33 ERA to the All-Star Game selection to the sixth-place finish in the Cy Young Award voting, there was one goal Clay Buchholz was unable to reach.
Discussion:
joy of sox
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Joe Frisaro / MLB.com:
Buchholz has ‘work to do’ before season
Michael Harrington / Philly.com:
Pedro Martinez is a work of art — If you're like us, you've been wondering what former Phillies pitcher Pedro Martinez has been up to. — Well, the former all-star and Cy Young winner was in Washington on Thursday to conduct a baseball clinic. Oh, and on Friday, he's dropping …
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Associated Press:
Royals Hoping Cabrera Rebounds — SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) — Melky Cabrera has been a spring training surprise for the Kansas City Royals. — Cabrera, who signed with the Royals in December, is batting .479 this spring with five doubles, two homers and 16 RBIs and 17 runs scored.
Discussion:
baseballmusings.com
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Michael Baron / MetsBlog.com:
go here — Michael Baron: How much did fan sentiment play into the decision to cut Castillo and/or Perez? — Short answer for Castillo: Yes, for Perez, probably not. We brought both players back to see the players, get to know the players, and make a decision not jus ton history, but current events.
Discussion:
Mets Merized Online, The Mets Police, Faith and Fear in Flushing, OnTheBlack.com, metsgrrl.com, MLB Rumors and ESPN
New York Times:
Mets Are Said to Be Suffering Sizable Losses — The Mets, long one of baseball's most highly valued franchises, have lost millions of dollars in recent years, including nearly $50 million in 2010, according to two people briefed on the team's finances. — The team's losses …
Discussion:
Amazin' Avenue, HardballTalk, ESPN and The Mets Police
Matt Eddy / Baseball America:
Minor League Transactions: March 16-22 — For the complete record: The asterisks (*) here denote instances of 40-man roster players who have agreed to terms on the minor league portion of their split major league/minor league contracts. These players will have their minimum salary dictated …
Discussion:
HardballTalk
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Mike Axisa / MLB Rumors:
Diamondbacks Sign Kip Wells
Harry Pavlidis / Hardball Times:
Five questions: Cincinnati Reds — Cincinnati jumped into the postseason in 2010 behind an explosive offense and a pitching staff bolstered by a variety of young arms. Joey Votto took home the MVP. The offseason found the Reds shoring up their long-term health, as Bronson Arroyo, Jay Bruce and Votto signed contract extensions.
Discussion:
Baseball Prospectus
Daniel Barbarisi / Wall Street Journal:
Embracing the Stolen Base — Girardi Challenges Statistics That Devalue a Steal; Gardner Will Keep Running — Brett Gardner is coming off a season in which he stole 47 bases in 56 attempts—an excellent 83% rate of success. — Last week, manager Joe Girardi gave the reporters assembled in his office a homework assignment.
Discussion:
BronxBanterBlog.com
Bruce Markusen / Hardball Times:
Cooperstown Confidential: Stories of Bobby Grich — Earlier this month, longtime baseball historian John Thorn raised a ruckus on the Internet when he suggested that too much of today's baseball writing focuses on statistics and sabermetrics and not enough concentrates on the colorful stories of the game's past.
Discussion:
Halo's Heaven
