2016 ranking of all 30 farm systems  —  To kick off my look this week at the best prospects in the minor leagues, I've ranked all 30 MLB farm systems from top to bottom, considering only the players who are currently in the systems and have not yet exhausted their rookie year of eligibility.

Organization Talent Rankings  —  As we continue our offseason prospect rankings, we line up the minor league talent in every organization from 1-30.  —  HEADLINES  —  Organization Talent Rankings  —  John Manuel and J.J. Cooper -Thursday, February 11, 2016

13-year-old Ocoee boy dies after accidental shooting linked to hoverboard  —  Lavardo Fisher was playing video games when he was accidentally shot by his cousin.  The 18-year-old shooter was on a hoverboard and lost his balance, causing the gun to fire.  (Video by FOX35) … Privacy Policy

Pirates To Sign Eric O'Flaherty To Minors Deal  —  The Pirates have agreed to a minor league deal with lefty reliever Eric O'Flaherty, Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports tweets.  He'll receive an invitation to MLB camp.  —  It has become cliche at this point, but the Bucs do have a record of helping to turn around once-productive pitchers.

Corey Dickerson expects to add ‘thump’ to Rays  —  ST. PETERSBURG — Corey Dickerson made his first appearance Wednesday with the dozen or so Rays who have been working out at the Trop, but he needed no formal introduction.  The sound of the ball coming off his bat and rattling around …

Giants Avoid Arbitration With Brandon Belt  —  The Giants have avoided arbitration with first baseman Brandon Belt by agreeing to a one-year deal, Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets.  He'll receive $6.2MM, Jon Heyman tweets.  —  The sides had seemed headed for a hearing.

Developing The baseballr Package For R  —  When this package is finished, it will hopefully be a mighty tool for baseball researchers and analysts.  —  Introduction  —  Late in 2015 I wrote a piece here at The Hardball Times that walked through some of my favorite R packages for gathering and analyzing baseball data.

AP Interview: Union Head Tony Clark Pitches for More Jobs  —  NEW YORK — With spring training approaching and dozens of players still seeking jobs, union leader Tony Clark concluded baseball's current system needs change.  —  Among those still on the free-agent market are pitcher Yovani Gallardo …

Recent hernia surgery to limit Astros' Evan Gattis this spring  —  One of the Astros' big bats won't be taking hacks when the Astros hold their first full workout on Feb. 23.  —  Astros designated hitter Evan Gattis recently underwent surgery to repair a hernia, the Chronicle has learned …

Klawchat 2/11/16.  —  My top 100 prospects ranking is up for Insiders, as is my ranking of all 30 MLB farm systems.  —  Klaw: I understand a fury in your words ... but not the words.  Klawchat.  —  John: How does Jose Peraza hit 293/.316/.378 as a 21-year-old in AAA and drop from #24 in your rankings last year to off the list??

The rarest pitch in baseball … You might think the rarest pitch in the game is the knuckleball — only two pitchers regularly throw it right now.  But there is a pitch that only Brad Ziegler throws often.  —  Ziegler throws a changeup — out of a submarine arm slot.

Jacob deGrom to Mets: ‘Willing’ to do long-term deal now  —  PORT ST. LUCIE — The deGrom door is open.  —  Last week, Sandy Alderson said there was a chance the Mets could lock up all of their young starters.  Though Matt Harvey may be impossible to keep for a variety of reasons …