Righthander Hughes next up to join Twins  —  Ex-Yankee Phil Hughes is expected to receive $24 million for three years from the Twins, who are also making progress to bring back A.J. Pierzynski.  —  The Twins are expected to announce the signing of free-agent righthander Phil Hughes to a three-year …

Navarro signing means Arencibia all but gone  —  TORONTO - J.P. Arencibia's time with the Toronto Blue Jays is on the verge of running out.  —  Three sources told sportsnet.ca that general manager Alex Anthopoulos will non-tender the 27-year-old ahead of Monday's midnight deadline if a trade partner doesn't emerge.

Ben Cherington, Red Sox stick to plan while they can  —  The Red Sox' newfound model of limiting the length of contracts and picking up good-value players won Ben Cherington a World Series and the executive of the year award last month.  That was a no-brainer for a general manager …

Insiders expect Beltran to land in pinstripes  —  The Yankees are viewed as the strong favorites to land Carlos Beltran.  Multiple executives with whom I spoke said that was the expectation.  —  “I think at this point it would be an upset if he didn't end up there,” one executive said.

Cano, Yankees near $100 million off: sources  —  A near $100 million gulf separates offers made by Robinson Cano, seen here at a recent Knicks game, and the Yankees.  —  When it comes to asking prices and counteroffers, Robinson Cano still is shopping in Alex Rodriguez's neighborhood, an industry source told The Post.

Rockies owner Dick Monfort provides detailed look at team's budget, financial structure  —  ARTICLE COMMENTS  —  Is your comment not appearing on the article?  Read this.  —  Note: Our article pages automatically refresh every ten minutes.  We cannot change this.

Royals face decisions before Monday's deadline for tendering contracts  —  Money talks.  Money always talks.  But it raises its voice Monday around Major League Baseball as clubs confront an 11 p.m. deadline Central time for offering contracts to all players under their control.

Yanks make offer to Hiroki Kuroda  —  NEW YORK — The Yankees have extended an offer to starter Hiroki Kuroda in an attempt to entice the right-hander to pitch one more season in the Bronx instead of retiring or returning to Japan to play, a source with knowledge of the discussions told ESPNNewYork.com.

Chasing A-Rod  —  The struggle between Major League Baseball and one of its greatest hitters over steroids is total war—fought with six-figure payoffs in the tanning salons and strip malls of South Florida.  —  I first met Alex Rodriguez at the Delano, the chic South Beach hotel in his hometown of Miami.

Despite crowded outfield, Tribe likely to tender Stubbs  —  Masterson, Brantley, Pestano among others expected to receive contract offers  —  CLEVELAND — If three is a crowd, it's getting a little claustrophobic in right field for the Indians.  The recent addition of outfielder David …

Mariners Close To Deal With Willie Bloomquist  —  11:44am: Bloomquist's deal is expected to be a two-year pact in the $5-6MM range, according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (on Twitter).  —  10:49am: The Mariners are nearing a deal with free agent utility player Willie Bloomquist …

Athletics, Kazmir Nearing Two-Year Deal  —  1:06pm: MLBTR's Tim Dierkes reports that it will be a straight two-year deal with no options for additional seasons (Twitter link).  —  1:04pm: Kazmir's deal will be for two years when it is finalized, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.

Flowers hopes to stay planted behind plate in Chicago  —  Backstop believes the odds are at least 50-50 Sox will tender him a contract  —  CHICAGO — It's almost impossible for Tyler Flowers to make a completely accurate guess as to whether he'll be tendered a contract by the 10:59 p.m. CT deadline to do so on Monday night.