Top News:
ESPN:
Manny Ramirez says he'll join A's — Manny Ramirez told ESPN's Pedro Gomez on Monday that he has agreed to a deal with the Oakland Athletics. — Ramirez — Sources tell Gomez the deal is worth about $500,000. Ramirez is obligated to serve a 50-game suspension without pay before beginning play …
Discussion:
Plain Dealer, Deadspin, Athletics Nation, Baseball Nation, MLB Rumors, NESN.com and ESPN
RELATED:
Troy E. Renck / Denver Post:
Rockies commit to Jim Tracy ‘indefinitely’ with new deal — Rockies manager Jim Tracy hits during a spring training baseball workout on Monday, Feb. 20, 2012, in Scottsdale, Ariz. (Darron Cummings, The Associated Press) — SCOTTSDALE — In an offseason defined by change …
Discussion:
baseballmusings.com, On the Rox and Purple Row
RELATED:
Mark Polishuk / MLB Rumors:
Rockies, Tracy Have “Handshake Agreement” On Extension
Rockies, Tracy Have “Handshake Agreement” On Extension
Discussion:
HardballTalk and Yahoo! Sports
Joel Sherman / New York Post:
Yankees reach agreement with Ibanez — TAMPA — The Yankees reached agreement with Raul Ibanez this morning on a one-year, $1.1 million contract plus incentives, pending a physical. — Ibanez is being brought in to be the primary DH against righty pitching.
Discussion:
NESN.com
RELATED:
ESPN:
Yanks agree to deal with Ibanez, sources say
Yanks agree to deal with Ibanez, sources say
Discussion:
MLB Daily Dish, It's About The Money and NoMaas.org
Bryan Hoch / MLB.com:
Yankees sign Ibanez to DH on one-year deal
Associated Press:
Free agent Ivan Rodriguez hoping for another shot — DETROIT (AP) - Ivan Rodriguez is working out daily to keep his 40-year-old body in shape, hoping he'll get a chance to play this season. — The 14-time All-Star and 13-time Gold Glove catcher insists he's not ready to retire - yet.
MLB:
Buster Posey told not to block plate — After a violent collision at home plate ended Buster Posey's season in May last season, San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy has instructed his All-Star catcher to no longer block home plate when a player is trying to score.
Discussion:
Associated Press and NESN.com
RELATED:
Henry Schulman / San Francisco Chronicle:
Giants tell Posey not to block plate this season
Giants tell Posey not to block plate this season
Discussion:
Deadspin, Extra Baggs, Only Baseball Matters and Baseball Nation
Ian Browne / MLB.com:
Crawford not ruling out return by Opening Day — Left fielder puts rough first season with Red Sox behind him — FORT MYERS, Fla. — For Carl Crawford, the final indignity of a season gone horribly wrong was that line drive off the bat of Robert Andino at Camden Yards that glanced off …
Discussion:
Boston Globe
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Joe McDonald / ESPN:
Dice-K throws in bullpen, on ‘very good pace’ — FORT MYERS, Fla. — Boston Red Sox pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka threw a bullpen session on Monday. However, even though Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine said the right-hander looks and feels good, Matsuzaka is not expected to pitch in a Grapefruit League game this spring.
Discussion:
Boston Globe
RELATED:
Nesn Video / NESN.com:
Bobby Valentine Expects Jose Iglesias to Push Mike Aviles in Red Sox' Shortstop Battle …
Bobby Valentine Expects Jose Iglesias to Push Mike Aviles in Red Sox' Shortstop Battle …
Discussion:
HardballTalk
Vegas Watch:
2012 MLB Wins Over/Unders — New York 93.0 o-115 Detroit 94.0 o-115 Texas 94.0 o-115 — Tampa Bay 87.5 o-122 Kansas City 78.5 u-119 Los Angeles 89.5 o-135 — Boston 87.5 o-115 Chicago 77.5 o-115 Oakland 73.0 o-115
Discussion:
Batter's Box Interactive … and THE BOOK
Erik Malinowski / Deadspin:
The Making Of “Homer At The Bat,” The Episode That Conquered Prime Time 20 Years Ago Tonight — On Feb. 20, 1992, more American homes tuned into The Simpsons than they did The Cosby Show or the Winter Olympics from Albertville, France. A foul-mouthed cartoon on a fourth-place network bested …
Jim Callis / Baseball America:
2012 Aggregate Bonus Pools — As part of the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, teams are now assigned an aggregate signing bonus pool for their picks in the first 10 rounds of the draft. Each has a predetermined value, from $7.2 million for the No. 1 choice to $125,000 for pick No. 300 and any subsequent .
Discussion:
Bless You Boys, Over the Monster, BBTF's Baseball Primer …, Twinkie Town, Bucs Dugout and River Avenue Blues
Marc Topkin / St. Petersburg Times:
Either Wade Davis or Jeff Niemann appears likely to wind up in bullpen thanks to Tampa Bay Rays' pitching surplus — Wade Davis has virtually no experience pitching out of the bullpen as a pro and says he doesn't intend to start now: “I definitely want to be a starter and stay a starter forever.”
Discussion:
HardballTalk
Michael Woods / Toronto Star:
The baseball gospel according to Garfoose: Q and A with former Blue Jay Dirk Hayhurst — Dirk (The Garfoose) Hayhurst isn't your typical relief pitcher. Known for his mythical creation called a Garfoose, a “fire breathing, magically empowered, indestructible, Wi-Fi enabled, half-giraffe half-moose …
Discussion:
Batter's Box Interactive …
Sam Fuld / Grantland:
Kim Klement/US Presswire — Game 162 — The Tampa Bay Rays' Sam Fuld revisits last season's historic night — I like to consider myself a coordinated person. I make a living running after baseballs in the outfield, sometimes dodging bullpen mounds, dancing along unpadded walls, even leaping over oncoming teammates on occasion.
Associated Press:
Hamels wants long-term deal to stay with Phils — CLEARWATER, Fla. — Cole Hamels sounds like a guy who expects to finish his career in red pinstripes. — All that remains is for Hamels' agent, John Boggs, and the Philadelphia Phillies to agree on a long-term contract.
Bill Ladson / MLB.com:
No plans for Nats to add right-handed bat — VIERA Fla. — With the retirement of Mike Cameron, don't look for the Nationals to acquire a right-handed-hitting outfielder. They feel they have enough from within if they decide to have a platoon situation in either center or right field.
Discussion:
Federal Baseball