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.

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 …

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 …

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.

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 …

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.

The end of the bench  —  Sometimes, the little things matter.  The ability to turn the double play.  Taking the extra pitch.  Moving the runners over.  Sometimes those little things, which can be overlooked easily, add up.  Done once or twice, they don't mean much.

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.

Brewers debating whether to tender offer to Francisco  —  Penciled into rotation, Estrada will receive contract before Monday night's deadline  —  MILWAUKEE — By Monday's end, Juan Francisco will either be a free agent or on track to get a nice raise in arbitration.

Sources: Cano, Yanks roughly $80M apart  —  Robinson Cano and the New York Yankees remain roughly $80 million apart on a new contract, sources told ESPN.com's Buster Olney.  —  Cano, sources said, asked for a nine-year deal at $28 million a year, with a vesting option for a 10th year at $29 million this past week.

Decision looms on A's longest-tenured player  —  Barton among those on bubble heading into non-tender deadline  —  OAKLAND — Do the A's hang on to Daric Barton as first-base insurance or let their longest-tenured player become a free agent?  —  That is one of the decisions they face Monday …