Brandon Phillips blocked a trade from Cincinnati to Atlanta, sources say  —  Even as Brandon Phillips faces a possible loss of playing time, he still is not ready to leave Cincinnati.  —  The Reds' second baseman used his no-trade protection in November to block a trade to the Braves, according to major-league sources.

Cubs want to host college football bowl game at Wrigley Field  —  Wrigley Field was transformed into a football stadium for the Nov. 20, 2010, game between Northwestern and Illinois.  —  Chicago Tribune  —  When New York Yankees officials announced the creation of the Pinstripe Bowl in 2010 …

Travis d'Arnaud needs bounce-back season to show Mets are right to pass on Matt Wieters  —  Matt Wieters is still on the market as a free agent, and the price for signing him may be falling, but Mets people continue to say they're not interested.  —  “We're not spending our money on a catcher,” was the way one person put it this week.

Alex Rodriguez will embrace ‘special advisor’ role with Yankees, not attempt return to baseball in 2017  —  It appears there will be no A-Rod baseball comeback in 2017.  —  Former Yankee Alex Rodriguez, who was unconditionally released by the Bombers last August, is not going to try to play …

Cincinnati Reds Top 10 Prospects  —  The State of the System: Cincinnati added a very nice name at the top with the second overall pick, but it was an up-and-down year for the rest of the system.  It lacks impact names past the top two, but it is a deep organization with some interesting 2017 breakout candidates.

New Stat for a Slugger: Back Page Appearances  —  Late in October, while the postseason was underway, two top Mets officials traveled to Manhattan to meet with Yoenis Cespedes's agents: Brodie Van Wagenen and Kyle Thousand.  —  Cespedes was about to become a free agent and the Mets wanted …

Blue Jays Sign Gavin Floyd To Minor League Deal  —  The Blue Jays announced that they've re-signed right-hander Gavin Floyd to a minor league contract and invited him to Major League Spring Training.  —  Floyd, 34 later this month, spent the 2016 campaign with the Jays and pitched reasonably …

A Letter to the Gator Nation  —  Three years ago, when my dreams finally came true and I arrived on campus at the University of Florida, something pretty strange happened.  —  The morning after my mom and stepfather moved me into my dorm room, said their goodbyes and flew home, I got sick.

LeBron James said the Cavs don't have a backup PG, but who's the remedy?  —  CLEVELAND, Ohio — LeBron James said the Cavs don't have a real backup point guard.  —  It's not a revelation.  James wasn't breaking any ground.  —  It's been the case since they let Matthew Dellavedova get away …

Sources: Cavs agree to deal for sharpshooter Kyle Korver  —  The world champion Cleveland Cavaliers have reached an agreement on a deal to acquire guard Kyle Korver from the Atlanta Hawks, league sources told The Vertical.  —  The Cavaliers and Hawks are still finalizing the terms of the trade …

Jeff Bagwell ‘anxious’ for upcoming Hall of Fame announcement  —  Two weeks to the night of when he is expected to receive the long-awaited call, Jeff Bagwell said he is “anxious” to learn his Hall of Fame fate.  —  The top returning vote getter not elected last year, Bagwell is highly likely …

Three years later, Yankees letting Robinson Cano walk looks like mistake  —  Ex-Yankee Robinson Cano returned to dominance in 2016, belting a career-high 39 home runs, triple-slashing .298/.350/.533 and ranking sixth in all of baseball with an ESPN Wins Above Replacement of 7.3.