A-Rod's hip

The hip that's potentially forcing Alex Rodriguez out of the World Baseball Classic is not a new injury, according to Yankees manager Joe Girardi.

"Alex expressed a little stiffness. There was really no pain," Girardi said on Wednesday, a day after the 33-year-old slugger played for the Dominican Republic in a tuneup for the World Baseball Classic. "We just thought it was best because he had some minor issues last year with it. We'll have a better idea after today with what the course of plan is."

The team announced on Tuesday that Rodriguez would get his hip checked by Dr. Marc Phillipon in Vail, Colo., on Wednesday afternoon. An exam Saturday revealed a cyst in the hip.

"Whenever you have something going on, you're concerned," Girardi said. "The fact he didn't have a lot of pain is a little bit more comforting. He's been able to play, and play at a high level. It hasn't kept him from doing anything. It hasn't kept him from driving the baseball. That's the good thing."

At this point it sounds like the Yankees and Rodriguez are trying to stop the injury from becoming a bigger problem, but if the issue lingered through the offseason into the spring there might be more to it than needing rest.

Acta: We don't want Barry

Nationals Manager Manny Acta summed up the interest level of at least one "rebuilding team" in Barry Bonds at his morning press conference.

"[Laughing]... it's not a match for us," Acta said. "I don't think at this stage of his career that Barry is going to pick a team that is rebuilding anyway."

Bonds would put people in the seats at Nationals Park, but that's not the direction the team is going in.

"Yeah he will, but that's not the main point here. It's trying to win, win in the long term basis and give a chance to younger guys."

The Nationals might not want Barry, but he would pick any team at this point. The only teams that might remotely be interested in him are the playoff contenders that fall into desperate straights later in the year.

They're the only ones that will even consider bringing on Bonds, and they won't be desperate for at least a few more months.

Pudge wants to play; Mets want Pudge?

Ivan Rodriguez doesn't want to talk about his ever-shrinking physique, but he does say he's looking to play baseball in 2009 at the major league level after playing for Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic.

“I’m expecting soon something to happen,” Rodriguez said yesterday after training at the Red Sox [team stats] minor league facility, where the Puerto Rican team will work out this week. “I’m ready to play for a major league team.”

There's at least one team willing to talk. The New York Mets would like Rodriguez to compliment Brian Schneider in a platoon- or reserve-type role.

Fantasy Impact: Rodriguez's numbers had slipped in recent seasons to that of a fringe starter for most fantasy formats. A platoon situation would take him off the fantasy radar entirely.

A's to sign Cabrera and Garciaparra?

One day after closing in on a contract with shortstop Orlando Cabrera, the Oakland A's are close on signing Nomar Garciaparra. He and Cabrera wouldn't be battling for playing time.

If signed, Garciaparra would provide depth at first base and third base, as well as serve as a righthanded bat off the bench.

Because of injuries, Garciaparra played in only 55 games for the Dodgers last season, hitting .264 with 8 homers and 28 RBIs.

Cabrera and Garciaparra won't take time from one another, but neither is a great fantasy option. Garciaparra won't play enough to make a dent. Jason Giambi and Daric Barton will get the lion's share of time at first, and unless Eric Chavez goes down (which is likely), Garciaparra won't get much time at third, either.

Cabrera is an average to above fantasy guy at short, but at 34 his value is likely to slip more toward average than above in the coming seasons.

Not so easy Edinson

The New York Post publishes the contracts of several pre-arbitration eligible players. What's striking is Edinson Volquez's money vs. someone like Garrett Olson or Jarrod Saltalamacchia.

Among notable signings are...
Garrett Olson ($420,000), Texas' Jarrod Saltalamacchia ($410,890) and Cincinnati's Edinson Volquez ($440,000).

Certainly Volquez is hurt by his youth in this case.

Not so Sori about his defense

Sabernomics.com, in a short review of John Dewan's The Fielding Bible II, lists the top defensive players at each position with regard to "runs saved."

Pos. - Player - Runs Saved
1B - Albert Pujols = 61
2B - Chase Utley = 63
3B - Pedro Feliz = 50
SS - Adam Everett = 48
LF - Alfonso Soriano = 42
CF - Carlos Beltran = 44
RF - Alex Rios = 49
C - Jason Kendall = 27
P - Kenny Rogers = 27

The shocker? Alfonso Soriano in left field. He's been ripped repeatedly for his defense at Wrigley Field. There is, however, merit to his high standing here. Soriano does have the ability to throw from left, recording the fourth-most assists from left field (10) in MLB. His five double plays from the outfield led the majors.

Is he an adventure in left? Yes, but it's traditionally the weakest defensive position in baseball. Maybe he's not so bad in terms of his peers.

Running Reds

The Reds' homer-hitting approach is getting a bit of a makeover this year with Dusty Baker interested in Willie Taveras and others running more on the base paths.

Baker is planning on having his team run much more this season, and he hopes using that aggressiveness will create more scoring opportunities.

"No. 1, you manage to your personnel. The personnel we have has more speed," Baker said. "Plus, nine years of losing the other way, you have to try something. Don't you think?"

Also, part of the revised focus is better pitching and defense -- both weaknesses in the past. Reds pitching staffs have routinely been around the National League's bottom in team ERA the past eight years. Last season's defense was second from the bottom in the NL.

Here's guessing that this story gets covered as "the Reds will run more in 2009," but actually, Baker seems to be talking about well-rounded-ness. Teams that have a more complete makeup have a better chance to win.

How many single-dimension offenses relying on the home run win championships? Not many. Last year's Chicago White Sox succeeded in winning a division with a homer-only approach. They didn't go any further.

Barry wants to play baseball... again

Barry Bonds wants back into baseball, and with his perjury trial on delay his agent is pushing for a return.

Borris said Bonds wanted to play in 2008, but no teams were interested in signing the all-time home run king, even at the minimum salary.

"Major League Baseball was successful in conspiring in keeping Barry out of uniform in 2008. Unless they have a change of heart or see an error in their ways, I seriously doubt that clubs will give him the opportunity to play this year," Borris told the newspaper.

USA Today reports Borris has been working in conjunction with the players association to investigate the union's collusion allegation, which MLB denies.

I wonder if anything changes with teams' interest this time around. Last year I was shocked that nobody jumped on the chance to have Bonds' bat in their lineup for at least part of the season. Now I'm expecting everyone to lay off after Bonds didn't play in all of 2008. He's 44, he just missed an entire season, and he's a PR nightmare, I think.

Santana weathering the elbow issue

The doom and gloom surrounding Johan Santana suddenly lifted today after a throwing session that removed doubt that a foggy left elbow problem might roll him into a doctor's office. He won't pitch in the World Baseball Classic due to the concern, but he also won't be worried about quite as much.

No flight to New York, no MRI, no flight back and -- the Mets fervently hope -- no more issues with his left elbow. Team Venezuela can't have Santana; the Classic won't pay the insurance premium. But the doctors can't have him either. Santana saw to that after some long-toss in the outfield and 31 pitches thrown off a practice mound Sunday morning convinced him he could move forward without tightness around his triceps tendon and risk.

That's excellent for the Mets and fantasy owners. I'm still going with Tim Lincecum as the ace of all aces until Santana is certainly back pitching in games. Even then Lincecum might be the best pitcher in baseball. CC Sabathia is my third pick this year.

A Wash with baseball news

Thanks to the Nationals, the Washington Post is almost as busy with investigative journalism and breaking news as they were during the Nixon years. Lots of tales to tell, indeed:

Alvarez/Gonzalez: "I feel bad, really bad"
Nationals decide to fire Rijo, search for new academy
Time runs out for Nats' Bowden

There's not much to comment on here, except for the fact that Bowden was always considered a touch shady. That and the fact that this could be just the tip of the iceberg in terms of uncovering players' falsified ages.

Dusty betting on Francisco

Dusty Baker's convinced that third base prospect Juan Francisco's the real deal because he excelled in winter ball. Baker offers up this analysis:

"Anybody who ever played Winter Ball knows that Winter Ball is no joke," Baker said. "People are into it big time, gambling on games. Therefore, that puts pressure on you. You better play good or you're going to hear it from somebody."

Yes, because when people bet on games it matters more, right? That's just silly.

Francisco does sound exciting, though. He hit 25 home runs as a 21-year-old in Single-A last year. Here's betting his power only improves!

Lachey throwing out Reds first pitch

Now this is breaking news! Nick Lachey will throw out "baseball's first pitch" when he does so for the Cincinnati Reds' Opening Day.

"Hopefully, I won't embarrass myself like our good mayor," said Lachey, a huge Reds, Bengals and University of Cincinnati sports fan. He watched Bob Huggins' homecoming ceremony, before the UC-West Virginia basketball game, on ESPN Thursday from his Los Angeles home.

"I was thrilled to see Huggs get such a great response from the crowd," he said.

I think Nick's already managed to do that a time or two, no?

Delino DeShields part II

Delino DeShields was a pretty good second baseman, and now his son, also Delino, is excelling as a two-sport athlete. It looks like he might end up with multiple offers to play college football, and he's likely got one to play baseball at Georgia Tech.

“Delino and his family had a one-on-one meeting with Georgia Tech’s staff on Thursday, and they extended a football offer to him,” Woodward Academy defensive backs/recruiting coach Ryan Davis wrote in an e-mail. “They will more than likely allow him to play baseball also.”

I was shocked that the former Major Leaguer already had a son ready to commit to play in college.

Don't have to shell it out to get Schilling

Curt Schilling says he'd consider coming back for another year if he can play for a team like the Cubs, or perhaps the Rays. Schilling also said his return wouldn't be about getting a big paycheck.

Schilling said Saturday that he'd like to pitch for the Cubs this season. The 42-year-old missed the 2008 season with a shoulder injury, but the thought of helping Chicago win its first World Series in 101 years might lure him back for one more season.

"Absolutely I'll come back," he said at Disney World, where he was appearing in ESPN The Weekend activities.
...
Schilling, who has a career mark of 216-146, said money would not be a major issue. He's looking for a team that has championship potential and has never won a title.

"The challenge would be in a place like Tampa Bay or Chicago," he said.

Being that he won World Series with the Diamondbacks and Red Sox, I'm sure there'd be a few Chicagoans dying to acquire his services. But this just in: Schilling is coming off of a major shoulder problem, and the Cubs are going to exhaust their search for a fifth starter with several talented young candidates first. The Rays have the uber-talented David Price slotted for their number five spot. Schilling would need some time to get ready. He won't be a Cub or a Ray.

Beltre told "no" for WBC

Adrian Beltre felt his surgically-repaired shoulder was ready to play at the World Baseball Classic. Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik felt otherwise. Today the team told Beltre they wouldn't excuse him to participate in the tournament.

"We had an idea how we both felt," Beltre said. "And from that conversation, I got that he wanted me to stay here but if I was going to go he was going to support that.

I was trying to get ready and mentally, I was ready to go. And physically, yesterday I found out I was ready to go. But today, it's a different story."

An unanswered question is whether this episode could impact Beltre's pending free-agency. Beltre has declined to comment on any possible contract extension, while speculation mounts that Zduriencik will attempt to deal him by the July 31 deadline.

The Mariners kept Beltre out of the lineup for Saturday's game, a 6-4 win over the San Francisco Giants. They plan to give him a couple of days off to absorb the decision and ease him in more slowly.

"I think they're separate issues," Zduriencik said of Beltre's free-agency and the denied WBC opportunity. "Hopefully, this isn't an issue that is anything further than this particular issue."

Beltre was fairly diplomatic about the situation, but if he's masking ill feelings, they could eventually come back to haunt the Mariners. Then again, if they're holding Beltre as trade fodder rather than a cog in the wheel, he might not be around long enough to get bitter.

Odds and ends on potential MLB contraction

Matt Snyder at Fanhouse is critical of the idea that baseball might need to consider contraction during the economic downturn. Among his good ideas:

If things continue down this path, it's conceivable to believe two franchises would be cut from the league. Of course, choosing the A's as one of the teams would cause a bunch of extra logistical problems. It would leave the AL West with only three teams, and both leagues would have an odd number of teams. Thus, you'd have to move a team from the National League to the American League. If you didn't move a team who could fit into the AL West, you'd have to move someone else into that division. So, are you going to choose a team from the NL West to switch leagues? If so, the Dodgers and Giants would be untouchable.

Then there's this one I like as well:

If MLB did decide to contract two teams, can you imagine a contraction draft? I assume they would draft instead of having a free-for-all free agency period. Still, without a salary cap, you'd have to assume the Royals or Nationals couldn't afford to pay Hanley Ramirez what the Yankees, Red Sox, or Cubs could, so there would probably be some jockeying with trades. Thus, it would just be a case of the rich get richer. I can't see that as being good for the game as a whole.

Agreed, and that's why baseball probably could use a salary cap, or, perhaps a couple of teams moving into the New York area to compete with the Yankees and Mets. Like that's ever going to happen.

One of Snyder's oddest comments, however, is this one:

Good luck convincing the Padres, Diamondbacks, or Rockies that they need to completely shift their entire method of building a team, because they now play against the Angels, Mariners and Rangers.

I don't think I've ever heard of a team that actually subscribes to the idea of just being better than its division mates. You don't compete to win a division; You compete to win as much as you possibly can. Therefore, you're building a team you believe can eventually compete with any team in baseball. I highly doubt any general managers subscribe to the theory of simply beating the teams around them. They simply don't play enough games against their division rivals to think that way. This line of thinking is archaic and bad practice.

Marmol leaving Cubs for country

Carlos Marmol, who originally opted out of pitching in the World Baseball Classic, will now go ahead and pitch for his native Dominican Republic. Marmol is doing so despite battling Kevin Gregg for the Cubs closer role.

"I said, 'Look, it's always an honor to represent your country,'" Cubs manager Lou Piniella said. "We're not here to make decisions for you. If you feel you want to go, it's the right thing to do. Like I told everybody else, be careful, and I wished him well.

"He's told me three different times he's going, and three different times he's not going. I'm more confused than he is."

Piniella also told Marmol not to worry about the Cubs' job.

"I told him it's not going to make any difference closing-wise," Piniella said. "I said, 'We're going to still let you all compete when you get back,' and that's the end of it. I hope he pitches well and he's happy with that, and so am I."

Sounds like a good deal for Marmol. The Cubs sound like an understanding team, and with seven weeks of spring training this year they'll get plenty of looks at both Marmol and Gregg. Now they have to hope Marmol is ready to go full bore at such an early time of year.

Royals sign Juan Cruz

Free agent pitcher Juan Cruz landed with the Kansas City Royals, signing a two-year, $6 million contract. He'll pitch in the setup role just like he did in Arizona.

Cruz, 30, spent the last three years with Arizona. He was 4-0 last season with a 2.61 ERA in 57 appearances. He struck out 71 batters last season in 51 2/3 innings while allowing 34 hits and 31 walks.

The Royals cleared space for Cruz on their 40-man roster by designating veteran utilityman Esteban German for assignment. The move provides the club with 10 days to trade or release German.

Cruz, a right-hander, is an eight-year veteran who is 29-31 with a 4.00 ERA in 297 career games with four clubs. He has 38 career starts but spent the last two seasons pitching exclusively in relief.

Cruz's fantasy value probably drops from last year to this year. He's a power pitcher, so he'll get strikeouts, but he won't have much of a chance for saves with Joakim Soria firmly entrenched as the Royals closer. Cruz might find less of an opportunity for holds as well, as Kansas City won just 75 games last year while Arizona won 82. You can't hold leads if you don't have them.

Pitchers batting second?

While the St. Louis Cardinals have used their starting pitchers in the eighth-hole of the batting order, the Mets one-upped them on Friday by inserting Livan Hernandez in the number two hole. Is this a harbinger of the two slot becoming a full-blown experiement for the New York National-Leaguers? Will other teams slide the pitcher up to two, hoping to sacrafice each and every time a leadoff man gets on base? The St. Louis Post Dispatch has the answer: a resounding NO!

Today’s starting pitcher, Livan Hernandez, is batting No. 2. Sure, Hernandez is a fine hitting pitcher, but he’s not really a worthy lead-in to the Nos. 3, 4, 5 — All-Stars Jose Reyes, Carlos Delgado and David Wright, respectively. No, the plan here is to get Hernandez an at-bat. While the Cardinals will continue using the DH for the first half of the month, the Mets are pushing their pitchers up in the lineup to assure they get an at-bat before their day is done. Jerry Manueal wants his pitchers hitting.

So Hernandez will likely pitch a couple innings, but by batting No. 2 he’s sure to get at least a swing.

That actually makes a lot of sense. Get those pitchers at bats so they're ready to sacrafice bunt, move players around and generally hit what they can once the season starts. Well played, Mets.

'Shoe' fitting at second

The Skip Schumaker experiment at second base continued for the Cardinals today, making this Schumaker's third start at the position in four spring games. MLB.com wrote about Schumaker's development at the position on Friday.

"The first three or four plays have been the best for me," said Schumaker, who fielded a popup and a soft liner in his second-base debut on Wednesday. "Getting acclimated, I couldn't ask for an easier way to get kind of settled in. To get into the game and get involved and stop thinking about what's going to happen for that first play is big. So I'm glad it finally happened."

It's still far too early to weigh in with any kind of judgment on the level of success of Schumaker's move. But at least he hasn't done anything to play himself out of the position yet.

"He needs game situations where he's got to run and he can make plays," said manager Tony La Russa. "But he's handling it in a way that makes you want to keep trying."

Schumaker's first full season as a starter was impressive to a degree. At the age of 28 he it .302 with a .359 OBP but with limited power. His eight home runs leave a lot to be desired from an outfielder, whether he's in center or a corner spot. That, and the Cardinals lack at second base, is the reason for his transition to infield.

Fantasy Analysis: It's intriguing to look at the possibilities of Schumaker moving to the infield. His average certainly competes favorably at the position, and he's in a productive lineup, meaning he can be a fairly safe bet to score 80-100 runs if he plays every day. That said, Schumaker is quite a bit below average (even at the second base position) in terms of pop. He turned in a measly .754 OPS in 2008 and hasn't stolen enough bases in recent years at any level to be considered a value in that category. He does, however, merit a look in larger or deeper leagues as a player than can be productive enough not to hurt you at his position. He's potentially worth a roster spot as a reserve or middle infielder if he wins the job.

Carpenter successful in first outing

Chris Carpenter took a solid first step in his attempt to return from a series of injuries dating back to opening night, 2007. He threw 19 pitches and 13 strikes in a spring training start against the Washington Nationals today, working the first two innings to pick up a win.

On Saturday, though, he looked every bit as sharp as ever. He retired the first batter he faced on a ground ball to second base, then hit Lastings Milledge. After that, Carpenter sat down the next five batters. Three hitters flied out to center field, though none of the balls were hit hard. His outing ended when Jesus Flores and Jose Castillo each grounded out to third base.

Carpenter threw 11 pitches in the first inning, eight for strikes. Five of his eight offerings in the second inning went for strikes. He is scheduled to start again on Friday at home against the Mets.

There's no word on Carpenter's mechanics or velocity, but 13 strikes in 19 pitches is a good sign. We'll stop short of glowing over this development as he only threw two innings and 19 pitches. He'll have to show a lot more than that if he wants to return to the Redbird rotation. That said, this is a positive outing, and Carpenter must be watched closely by fantasy owners throughout the spring.

Santana's arm issue a reality drops fantasy value a touch

It's still early in the Johan Santana saga, but his scratched start from Friday is resulting in some speculating from the New York Times that Santana might miss his Opening Day start.

Twenty days after arriving in Florida, he has yet to face a batter.

“We talked about taking everything easy and not going crazy,” Santana said. “Jerry will make a decision on when I will pitch again, and in the meantime I’m going to get myself ready. He doesn’t want me to put myself in any situation where it gets any worse.”

“For me to go out there right now without facing any hitters would be the wrong thing to do,” Santana added. “So we have a plan where I have to throw some light B.P. like I’ve done in the past, and we’ll go from there.”

Still, he would not say for sure whether or not he would start on opening day, April 6 in Cincinnati.

“If it’s going to be me or somebody else, it’s tough to say,” he said. “But right now, on paper, I’m supposed to be the one.”

Santana, who has been throwing every other day, said that he had not had a magnetic resonance imaging exam, but that team doctors told him that his elbow tightness was related to his triceps tendon. He played down the severity, insisting that there are still five weeks until opening day.

As Manager Jerry Manuel put it Friday, the Mets are being “extra, extra, extra cautious.”

Severe or not, this issue is enough to drop Santana behind Tim Lincecum as the most attractive pitcher on fantasy draft day. Lincecum meets or exceeds Santana in every category but wins, and with Johan possibly missing time, Lincecum can beat him there, too.

Fatansy Analysis: It is Spitting Seeds' opinion that Tim Lincecum is the safer bet to have a better 2009 at this time. Santana has plenty of time to get it going this spring, but any arm troubles this early in the year are a cause of concern. Stay tuned.

White Sox have an army of arms

The White Sox are excited about the prospects of their tweaked pitching staff this season, and there's good reason for optimism. The staff features a nice blend of young and not-so-young talent, including Gavin Floyd, John Danks, Mark Buehrle, Clayton Richard, Lance Broadway Jose Contreras and Bartolo Colon.

...with five weeks remaining in spring training and plenty of candidates, Cooper has plenty of options for what likely will be a 12-man pitching staff.

There's a groundswell of optimism that Contreras and Colon, who will complete their throwing programs Friday, will be ready to make their first regular-season starts April 10-11 against the Twins.

In fact, manager Ozzie Guillen said Contreras and Colon won't have any restrictions placed on them once they join the rotation. Cooper also has ruled out opting for a six-man rotation to start the season even though the Sox successfully preserved Buehrle's left arm last year by giving him extra rest in April.

"We're looking to leave [spring training] with the guys we feel can win ballgames, and they have a track record, they have an edge," Cooper said Thursday. "Heck, one is a Cy Young Award winner [Colon], and the other is a World Series playoff hero [Contreras]. If they're throwing well, they're going to be in there. If not, we have some other guys to turn to."

While there's uncertainty regarding the timetable for return of both Colon and Contreras, the Sox can get by with a pretty decent group until one or both will be ready. It's hard to believe Baseball Prospectus projected this team to be last in the American League Central. I have a hard time picking them behind Kansas City. Chicago has both good pitching depth and a solid lineup.

Carpenter goes Saturday

The top pitcher to follow Saturday in a spring training game is Cardinals hurler Chris Carpenter, who attempts to prove he's on the road to making the team's rotation.

The Cardinals concede Carpenter's recovery from nerve transposition and an unrelated season-ending nerve condition is the camp's No. 1 concern. Carpenter would prefer the attention go elsewhere.

"Like I've said all along, everybody else is making a bigger deal out of it — understandably," Carpenter said.

Carpenter will face Washington at Roger Dean Stadium and be limited to 40-45 pitches. Manager Tony La Russa and pitching coach Dave Duncan will fixate more on Carpenter's mechanics and recovery than any instant statistical gratification.

"I know with the way that I feel that I'm not too concerned about it," Carpenter said. "I feel good. I feel strong."

He's the Cardinals number one priority in terms of monitoring progress this spring, and he should be a top priority to follow for every fantasy owner. Carpenter's draft position could slide wildly to either end of the spectrum because of a productive or unproductive performances through the end of March. Watch him closely every time out. He's probably capable of returning to his ace status. Then again, with all the injury problems over the past two years, he's also capable of becoming Mark Prior.

Maine on the mend

While most teams get set to play their first exhibition games today, the Mets got good news from a scrimmage on Tuesday: John Maine is pitching pain-free.

"My arm feels great. My body feels great," said Maine, who went 10-8 with a 4.18 ERA last season. "I just feel like it's been such a long time. The mechanics are a little off and I was rusty a little bit, but other than that, and more importantly, my arm feels good."

Fantasy Impact: A healthy Maine can be the difference for New York this year. Without him down the stretch the Mets struggled and so did some fantasy teams. When healthy, Maine is a solid second or third option in a fantasy rotation, capable of producing wins and strikeouts.

Boof goes poof

Scratch Boof Bonser's name from the starting lineup, and perhaps even from the Twins' setup role this season. He's undergoing shoulder surgery and could be out months.

The decision to have surgery comes after Bonser had two MRI exams and a cortisone shot since the end of last season. The exams showed no structural damage, and the cortisone shot, given a few days before Bonser reported to camp, yielded minimal results.

The surgery will be performed by Tampa Bay Rays team physician Dr. Koco Eaton in St. Petersburg.

"They're going to go in and clean up," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "They know that there's a little small spur that's part of the problem. ... There's no timetable right now because first you have to see exactly what happens in the surgery and what else they find. They'll check everything out as they go through it, in a scope fashion."

Bonser's already damaged fantasy value just hit the floor. What happened to this high-end prospect?

San Jose A's?

The San Jose Mercury News believes the "San Jose Athletics" has a nice ring to it. Now that the A's Fremont move has fallen through, the team will restart it process to find a place for a new stadium.

Does MLB want to have two strong and healthy franchises in the Bay Area — or will it continue forcing one team to play in an outdated, mutated multi-purpose stadium in the wrong area code?

I realize that's not how the fundamental question about the A's future is usually framed. Instead, it goes this way: Will the Giants allow the A's to build a ballpark in Santa Clara County, where the Giants own territorial rights?

Wrong. As I have noted, those "territorial rights" do

not "belong" to the Giants. Those "rights" are the property of Major League Baseball, which permits the Giants to claim them. But the "rights" can be overturned with one swift vote by MLB owners.

I think the "territorial rights" argument will be a tough sell: see Orioles/Peter Angelos vs. proposed Washington Nationals. It's a complicated process, however, moving the A's. This will probably play out a while.

Tampa at the brink

According to Tampa Bay principal owner Stuart Sternberg, the Rays pushed their payroll to the absolute limit this offseason in fine-tuning the 2009 roster.

"We, quite frankly, can't really afford what we've got on the field this year. But at least we were able to spend the money on a lot of value, we think, and pieces that will give us the opportunity to grow the franchise over the long haul and give us the best opportunity for success this year."

The number of season tickets sold and the Rays' attendance as a whole this season could impact the ultimate decision on that front.

Sternberg said season-ticket sales are up from last year (single-game tickets go on sale this week), but the Rays expect only one major-league team - the Marlins - to sell fewer season tickets this season.

The Marlins happen to be the only team to also underspend the Rays on their roster last year. Tampa spent $43,820,597 on personnel in 2008. Florida's players cost $21,811,500.

Making just one major signing in Pat Burrell this offseason, the Rays will have to hope the Yankees and Red Sox aren't that improved. If the World Series runner up struggles to get competitive in ticket sales and payroll, how long can they stay at the top? Tampa's relative youth would seem to offset any precipitous downfall, but downward trends are certainly more likely the harder it is to compete financially.

Prospecting the prospects

Baseball America's top 100 prospects list is out, and I'm a bit surprised that Matt Wieters headlines the group in front of David Price. Price is my pick to make the biggest impact in his career and this year in terms of the top 20 players in the list.

I'm expecting Price, Wieters, Colby Rasmus, Cameron Maybin and Trevor Cahill to make an impact this year at the Major League level. Alicides Escobar is my dark horse for service time, especially if Ricky Weeks falters for the Brewers at second base.

WBC - We Barely Care

World Baseball Classic rosters came out today. I'm finding it hard to care. My only real interest in the games are that players like Roy Oswalt and Jake Peavy do not get injured for fantasy baseball purposes. Call me jaded, but when rosters are hodgepodge consortia of stars and no-names there's no real interest. We're not watching the best of the best, the pitchers haven't had a chance to settle into spring ball and there's no connection to these games except that it's baseball on television.

I'll be watching, so I know whom not to draft when they end up getting injured.

All we have to Fear is Fehr

Donald Fehr says the "steroid problem" has been fixed?

"Everybody understands that there were things which happened in the early part of the decade, which we wish hadn't, that that's not the case anymore," Fehr said Monday at the Florida Marlins' camp in Jupiter, Fla., the first stop on his annual tour of spring training sites.

"We fixed the problem and we need to look forward, as (commissioner) Bud (Selig) has said many times.

"So far as I know, there is not a hint or suggestion that there is anything inappropriate or that it's not functioning right or that it isn't doing the job in 2005, '06, '07 or '08," Fehr added. "And somehow that gets lost in what I can basically call the sensationalism around what happened five years ago."

As long as the chemists want money and the designer drugs stay ahead of the tests, a number of players will be doing steroids. We'll probably only catch their usage when newer tests become available.

Samardzija might start

Moments after his value plummeted following comments by Lou Piniella on WGN news tonight that he wouldn't be in the closer competition, Jeff Samardzija rebounded with this report in the Chicago Tribune. Samardzija is getting the first stab at the Cubs' open fifth starter spot.

All I ever ask for is an opportunity to make it happen on the field," Samardzija said. "You can talk about what you want to do or what your plans are as much as you want. But until you go out and physically prove your point, it's all just talk."

Sean Marshall will start the second game against Milwaukee, with Ted Lilly slated to go in Game 3 against Texas. They're scheduled to work two innings apiece.

Fantasy Impact: This is just an opportunity and should be monitored through the spring. If Samardzija loses the starting spot to someone like Marshall, he might not have any value at all. There's a chance he would start the season in Triple-A if the Cubs feel more seasoning is needed before he starts at the big league level. If that happens, Marshall or whomever inherits the number five spot earns value for at least the first month or two of the season.

Murphy's job in left for Mets

Daniel Murphy is the Mets starter in left field, according to manager Jerry Manuel. Murphy was expected to platoon with Fernando Tatis, but instead Tatis will likely share time with Ryan Church in right field.

"I don't want him to get into a strictly platoon situation," Manuel said. "I think he's a little better player than that. Also, with Church being a lefthanded hitter, I kind of see Murphy being a better hitter right now at this time, so Tatis could go that way [in rightfield]. It all depends on how well they're doing. If they're not getting hits, they're not going to play. Development or whatever, they've got to perform."

That's the one caveat with Murphy: He's only 23 and essentially was promoted straight from Double-A Binghamton last season. Murphy played one game at Triple-A New Orleans before he joined the Mets in Houston and started that same night against the Astros at Minute Maid Park.

This smacks of taking pressure off a young man the Mets would like to see succeed. Or does it put more pressure on Murphy? Either way, the Mets want him to win the job, but if he doesn't, this could be a three-way platoon with Tatis switching from left to right on a given day.

Lugo vs. Lowrie begins

Does Julio Lugo become this year's Coco Crisp for the Boston Red Sox? A veteran player talented enough to play every day, but who can't do enough to keep a youngster out of the lineup? Last year Jacoby Ellsbury nudged Crisp into a utility role. Now Jed Lowrie is poised to bounce Lugo from the lineup.

A quadriceps injury ended Lugo's season July 11, although he said he could have played if Boston reached the World Series. He batted .263 with one homer and 22 RBIs after hitting .237 with eight homers and 73 RBIs in his first season with the Red Sox.

"This is a big spring for Julio," Francona said. "He feels like he has a lot to prove."

The 33-year-old Lugo could win the job or enhance his trade value with a solid spring. He heard rumours during the off-season about being dealt for Detroit pitcher Dontrelle Willis, who missed most of last season with a knee injury.

"This is a business," said Lugo, playing with his fourth team since reaching the majors with Houston in 2000. "You want to be where people want you. That's it. If I don't get traded it's because (the Red Sox) want me."

Lowrie has more experience at the other infield spots so might be a better fit as the utility player. He could spell AL MVP Pedroia at second base and Mike Lowell, recovering from off-season hip surgery, at third.

At 25, Lowrie isn't exactly the face of youth, but he's still got growth potential and put up halfway decent numbers on his way up the ladder. He can probably outperform Lugo in every offensive category except for steals.

Fantasy Impact: Something tells me Boston doesn't trust either one of these two. They trusted Ellsbury. That's why Lugo was jettisoned in the offseason. Lowrie and Lugo were both brought back, and my guess is they share time at second. Lugo will get more time, Lowrie will play more of that dreaded utility role. Leave them alone, unless you're dying for Lugo's wheels.

Oh, Odalis

Odalis Perez is getting himself into trouble over what is now a contract holdout with the Nationals.

Perez has expressed his dissatisfaction with his contract since he gave his agent the OK to sign a non-guaranteed minor league deal with Washington on Feb. 5 that would pay him $850,000 if he makes the team, the same stipulation he faced last year.

General manager Jim Bowden hasn't yet spoken with Perez, and doesn't know if he'll show.

"He's not returned my calls, he's not returned (manager) Manny's (Acta) calls and he hasn't returned his agent's calls, so we're waiting to hear back from him," Bowden said. "We're looking at all of our options. We're taking the position that we have an agreement with the player and we're expecting the player to honor the agreement. But we'd like to talk to him first, so we're going to wait until he calls us back and then address the other options at that point."

I'm surprised to learn Perez doesn't make millions considering he's been in the league for a number of years now as a starting pitcher.

Fantasy Impact: Perez is a low-end fantasy option, and the longer he's out, the less of an option he becomes. He's good for a win or two, or maybe some innings eating, if he gets a very favorable matchup.

Teahen at second

This article is mostly about Ryan Shealy and Ross Gload, who are competing for mere roster spots with the Royals at this time. More interesting, however, is where Mark Teahen was playing.

The two starting intrasquad lineups each included two designated hitters in a 10-player format:

CF Coco Crisp, SS Mike Aviles, LF David DeJesus, DH Ross Gload, 1B Billy Butler, C John Buck, 2B Willie Bloomquist, 3B Esteban German, RF Derrick Robinson and DH John Suomi.

CF Mitch Maier, SS Tony Peña, 1B Mike Jacobs, DH Ryan Shealy, 3B Alex Gordon, C Miguel Olivo, 2B Mark Teahen, DH Alberto Callaspo, LF Chris Lubanski and RF José Duarte.

Rumored to play some at second base this year, Teahen owners in deeper keeper formats may want to pay attention.

Fantasy Impact: Teahen's been more of an afterthought in recent fantasy seasons. If he was in your starting lineup, you were likely looking for a better alternative. With this look at second, his fantasy value becomes intriguing. Teahen at second is much more valuable than Teahen in the outfield or at the corner. He'd become an instant rival for Orlando Hudson in terms of one of the higher end options at the position.

Crawford clawing back

Rays left fielder Carl Crawford, who was hampered by a hamstring injury last season, is apparently back to full health again. Crawford is expecting bigger things in 2009.

''I changed my offseason workouts and focused on the hamstring,'' Crawford said. ``I still worked out, I just addressed the hamstring more than in the past.''

Instead of going to Phoenix where he always did his offseason regimen, Crawford stayed at home in Houston, ran on grass instead of artificial turf to aid his hamstring and worked out with a local Houston trainer.

The hope is to play in more games and bring the numbers back to normal. Last season was the first time Crawford's batting average dipped. He had hit over .300 for three consecutive seasons before batting .273 last year. The hamstring issues cost him on the bases, too. Crawford stole only 25 bases last season.

He averaged 51 steals over the previous five seasons, and in 2007 he became just the eighth player in history to reach 250 stolen bases and 1,000 hits before his 27th birthday. Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon said he believed Crawford was even more focused and ready for a big year.

Crawford could get turned loose this season as the Rays need to max out in order to win the improved AL East.

Fantasy Impact: Crawford typically went in the second round of most fantasy drafts, but not this year. I saw him slide to he fourth or fifth round in some mock drafts after his subpar season. I think the former is too early for his abilities, and the latter is too low. Crawford is a solid late third or early fourth round pick. He'll deliver in at least three categories, and with an improved team around him for a full season, he could mark consistently in four.

Willis working his way back

When talking about potential American League Comeback Players of the Year, look no further than Dontrelle Willis, who is back to his usual smiling self in Tigers camp. Jim Leyland thinks his veteran lefty could be back on track, potentially for a shot at the team's fifth starter spot.

For Willis, Saturday marked the beginning of the beginning, the revving of the engine before the qualifying heats. The exhibition season opens Wednesday.

Leyland said of Willis' work Saturday: "It's probably the best I've seen him since we acquired him. His delivery was good. He was around the plate. He had some depth to his breaking ball. We'll see how that translates when other guys (opposing teams) start showing up."

Willis' windup looked more compact and fluid Saturday than it did last season. "I accomplished what I wanted to ... today," said Willis. "You live for today." He said more than once that he has punted last season from his mind.

Willis has had two outstanding seasons in his career, his rookie campaign of 2003 and his third season in which he won 22 games. There's every expectation that he can regain his form.

Fantasy Impact: Draft him. Seriously. He's only 27, he's bouncing back from the first major setback of his career, and if he feels right, he's Cy Young potential. Willis will be off some people's draft radar, so watch him slide into the later rounds, then draft him before he's gone. He could be a difference-maker in 2009.

More steals, sure, but we need even more from Taveras

Willie Taveras stole 68 bases in 75 attempts last season, double his career high. Now he's looking to do even more.

"I think with a .350 on-base I can steal 100 bases," he said.

The last player to steal 100 bases in a season was Vince Coleman, who took 109 for St. Louis in 1987.

"It can happen," Reds manager Dusty Baker said of Taveras. "He's hard to throw out. He studies. I'm beginning to realize he's smarter than a lot of people give him credit for, which is how I think he likes it. Sometimes, it's better if people don't think you're smart."

But, again, getting to first base is the first step.

"He's got to get on base a lot more than he has before," Baker said.

Taveras doesn't help himself with walks. In 2007, when he missed time with a quad strain, Taveras walked 21 times in 408 plate appearances. Last year, he walked 36 times in 531.

"I think, to be honest with you, I was very consistent in 2007," he said. "I hit the ball more solid. I was in and out of the lineup a lot of times last year. Sometimes, you work hard and you still struggle. It's a new year. (Last year's) in the past."

Taveras isn't a keeper in most leagues, so look for his value to go up if this story gets a little bit more publicity. He's almost a lock to steal 50 bases, which could lead the league in an average season.

Fantasy Impact: Be careful in your draft with this info. I don't believe a base stealer like Taveras makes enough of a diffence in any other category to be more than a middle-tier selection. You can get stolen bases elsewhere, if needed. You don't need the top dog to win the hunt.

A trace of the old Tracy

I haven't really looked at the list, but Chad Tracy certainly comes to mind for National League Comeback Player of the Year now that he's back from microfracture knee surgery.

"It scared me; I'll be honest. But I kept pushing ahead, sticking to my rehab, doing everything they told me to do, and I'm fortunate my knee made it back. I'm very close to where I used to be."

Tracy slugged his way through the Diamondbacks' farm system with a high batting average and on-base percentage. At every stop, his managers praised his clutch hitting and ability to spray the ball to all parts of the field.

After hitting .308 with 27 homers in 2005, his second year in the majors, he appeared on the verge of becoming the franchise's foundation. If the Diamondbacks were to make another run at a championship, Tracy figured to be the player leading the way.

But because of the growing discomfort in his knee, which he believed was nothing more than minor tendinitis, and a slew of top prospects, Tracy missed out on his potential stardom.

Tony Clark is his only real competition at first base now that Connor Jackson is in the outfield. Tracy is young enough to find his form and put up some monster numbers. He had a couple of nice years before struggling with the knee problem the last two seasons.

Fantasy Impact: He's a great flier pick in the middle rounds. If he slips outside of a starting spot on draft day, get him before someone else gets wise.

Contract alone can't keep Roberts in Baltimore

The Baltimore Sun points out that Brian Roberts is still on trade watch, despite his new contract with the Orioles.

Roberts had a very limited no-trade clause for the final year of his previous contract, allowing him to designate four teams to which he could not be traded. That was carried forward when the final year of the old deal was rolled into what essentially is a new five-year contract.

The no-trade protection graduates through the next three years of the contract. He will be allowed to designate eight teams he doesn't want to play for next year and 12 teams the following season. The no-trade clause becomes blanket protection a couple of months before Roberts would get it anyway as a 10-5 player.

He's certainly an attractive candidate to any contending team needing a leadoff hitting second baseman.

Braves get better player in Anderson

Garrett Anderson signed with the Atlanta Braves, where he's expected to enter a left field platoon with Matt Diaz.

The left-handed slugger and three-time former All-Star is expected to play left field for the Braves and perhaps work in a platoon with Matt Diaz — the role the Braves planned for Ken Griffey Jr., before Griffey decided Wednesday to sign with Seattle instead of Atlanta.

Anderson hit .293 with 15 home runs, 84 RBIs and a .325 on-base percentage last season, including 14 home runs in 433 at-bats against right-handed pitchers.

For comparison, Griffey hit .249 with 18 homers and 71 RBIs last season, including .272 with 14 homers in 327 at-bats against right-handers.

Soon after Griffey announced his decision, the Braves moved on to Anderson, despite stating publicly that they would take a look at their organization’s young outfielders and not immediately pursue another free agent or a trade for a veteran.

The Griffey option might have been more of a public relations plus for Atlanta than a productive senior outfielder. Anderson appears to have more hitting ability at this stage of his career.

Check out their numbers from 2007 to 2008:

Griffey:
2007: .277 AVG / 30 HR / 93 RBI / 528 AB
2008: .249 AVG / 18 HR / 71 RBI / 490 AB

Anderson:
2007: .297 AVG / 16 HR / 80 RBI / 417 AB
2008: .293 AVG / 15 HR / 84 RBI / 557 AB

As Griffey declines precipitously, Anderson is a steady veteran at this point. Maybe Griffey can recapture some past magic, but anyone who saw him play late last year with the White Sox will tell you he looked closer to washed up than consistent contributor.

Fantasy Impact: While you never rule out a former star completely, Griffey might be a backup fantasy player for the first time in his career. He just doesn't have the numbers to expect much upside. Anderson will potentially lose at bats this year, but if he hits 400 times, expect double-digit home runs and a .290 average, which puts him in your fourth outfield slot or on your bench as a backup who helps more than he hurts.

Less K in DiamondbacKs?

I felt like the Arizona Diamondbacks struck out a lot last season, but I had no idea that their 1,287 whiffs were ninth most in MLB history! They're putting in work this spring to bring that number down.

Behind a back field at the Diamondbacks' facility here, hitters stand inside a cage as pitching machines spin breaking balls at them. They stand and they watch them dip and dive. They track the pitches as they rotate past them.

The Diamondbacks last season set a franchise record for strikeouts, and the idea of these first-week drills is that the more breaking balls the hitters see, the more acclimated they will be to hitting them.

"I think it can definitely help," center fielder Chris Young said. "Those were the type of pitches that were getting us when things were going bad."

Certainly, Arizona can use some work with regard to putting the ball in play. A lot of improvement should come with a young lineup maturing each year, but with a strong pitching staff, an extra run or two with situational hitting late in games could be the difference between becoming a dominant force in the National League and missing the postseason altogether.

No qualms with Qualls

Bob Melvin says he has no problem naming Chad Qualls his closer, even if the longtime setup man owns just 15 career saves.

"He pitched well down the stretch and closed out the games he had to close out, and therefore he earned the spot to be our closer going into the season," Melvin said.

Qualls finished the season strong, going 2-0 with seven saves in September, which included a streak of 13 scoreless innings.

Melvin should feel good about naming Qualls his closer. After watching Brandon Lyon and Jon Rauch struggle to keep the job, Qualls did well down the stretch. His career WHIP of 1.20 is good for the role. He held opponents to a .224 average last year with a .249 clip for his career. He also struck out nearly a batter an inning in 2008, which makes him capable of getting out of jams.

Fantasy Impact: I expected Qualls to earn the closer job early last season. Now he's getting the opportunity to take the reigns in spring training and run with it. Expect him to succeed. He's done nothing but improve over the last two years.

Fundamentals discovered in Florida, Chicago

In developing news regarding things every baseball team should do, the Florida Marlins continue to encourage their pitchers to learn the changeup while the Cubs realize the benefits of a balanced lineup. Seriously? We're just figuring this stuff out in 2009? Way to go.

One note, however, from the Cubs story. If Alfonso Soriano, in fact, doesn't end up hitting leadoff for the Cubs this year, Ryan Theriot won't be fighting for the role.

"I hate leadoff," Theriot said. "I just want to hit third. I think 'D-Lee' should hit leadoff."

D-Lee, a.k.a. Derrek Lee, who has primarily batted third his entire career, was sitting in the middle of the Fitch Park clubhouse, calmly reading the newspaper when Theriot tried to oust him from his spot.

"No," Lee said, shaking his head.

Lee's home run numbers have dropped the last two seasons -- he hit 46 in 2005 and 20 last year -- but Theriot doesn't seem a likely fill-in. The shortstop hit one home run last year. One.

"How about fourth?" Theriot said, knowing better than to argue with the 6-foot-5 Lee.

I think the Cubs are in trouble with their leadoff spot. Soriano's on-base average was just .344 last year and only .329 for his career. If Theriot's not interested in the job, he's really the only good option with an OBP that reached .387 last year. Mike Fontenot would be the left-handed choice, but he's never had a starting spot, let alone hit from the top of the order. The Cubs still might need to acquire a table-setter late in the year.

A tough call in Tampa

Jason Isringhausen's signing by the Tampa Bay Rays is going to make this spring bullpen-watch for fantasy owners. Isringhausen will directly compete with Troy Percival for closing duties with the Rays.

Tampa Bay is banking on Isringhausen's 2008 season being an aberration. His body of work allows that having him in camp is a risk worth taking.

"Gosh, I hear nothing but good things about this fella," Rays manager Joe Maddon said. "We're looking forward to seeing him out there."

Isringhausen has compiled 293 career saves, sixth highest among active players and 22nd on the all-time list. Since 2000, his 284 saves rank tied for third (with Billy Wagner) among Major League pitchers, trailing only Mariano Rivera and Trevor Hoffman. He is also the all-time Cardinals leader with 217 saves.

Isringhausen was selected to the National League All-Star team in 2005 and the American League squad in '00. He has pitched in five postseasons with St. Louis and Oakland and reached the World Series in '04. In 23 career postseason appearances, he is 4-5 with 11 saves and a 2.36 ERA; he saved a career-high 47 games in 2004, tied for the NL lead.

Count incumbent closer Troy Percival among Isringhausen's biggest fans after watching him pitch from the opposing dugout in the AL and being teammates with Isringhausen with St. Louis.

Yes, but dont' forget Grant Balfour, who'd appear to have a great makeup for a closer. The Rays also have David Price, who certainly could end up in the rotation. He's also got an impressive makeup for closing out baseball games. Whomever wins the job, they could easily tally 40 saves for a young contender.

Twins ink Crede

Joe Crede agreed with the Minnesota Twins to a 1-year incentive-laden contract. He's likely to be the Twins regular third baseman this year.

The Twins will sign Crede to one-year deal with a base salary of $2.5 million with the chance to earn as much as $7 million with appearance bonuses. The bonuses begin once Crede reaches 250 plate appearances and tops out at $7 million when he makes his 525th plate appearance.

Crede, while traveling to Fort Myers, has run into weather problems - in Minnesota. The Twins had scheduled a 3 p.m. press conference but that now has been pushed back until they learn when Crede will arrive in town.

Joe C. is the man! He’s producing all the way from the Twin Cities!

This a is very, very good deal for the Twins. A $7 million base salary seemed too high. A $5 million base seemed reasonable. But a $2.5 million base really helps the Twins out from a risk standpoint. If Crede is healthy, he should play like a $7 million player. If he breaks down, the Twins have a good Plan B in Brian Busher and Bredan Harris. And there’s money available to add move talent - perhaps a free agent reliever like Juan Cruz.

This also means the Twins will have to make another 40-man roster move to clear space for Crede. Update: To make room for Crede, the Twins have placed injured righthander Pat Neshek on the 60-day disabled list. Neshek will miss the entire 2009 season because of Tommy John surgery.

Agreed that Crede will be a great addition in Minneapolis. If his back is OK, he can field with the best of them, and he offers another bat that Minnesota craves. Solid pickup. What the White Sox cast off could end up hurting them in their own division.

Jose, can you leave?

The Esmailyn Gonzalez fiasco landed Jose Rijo a leave of absence from his front office position with the Washington Nationals..

Earlier this week, MLB investigators determined that Washington prospect Esmailyn Gonzalez had been signed by the Nationals while using a false name and age. The player, thought to be 16 at the time of his July 2006 signing, was actually four years older, and named Carlos Alvarez Daniel Lugo. Rijo brokered the signing, which rewarded Gonzalez with a $1.4 million signing bonus, the most Washington has ever paid for an international player.

While orchestrating the deal, the Nationals dealt with a Dominican street agent, Basilio Vizcaino, a childhood friend of Rijo's.

"Jose is on a leave," Washington team president Stan Kasten said. "With all the questions swirling and all the work being done still on this matter, we felt it would be a good time to be away from here."

Kasten said that Rijo remains an employee of the organization, but there is no timetable for his return.

Sounds like the Nationals are trying to determine how much Rijo knew about Gonzalez. Did he defraud his own team, or was he made a sucker by his own friend?

No Moneyball

Looks like a couple of Yankees got to experience a life less fortunate thanks to the Stanford scandal. Johnny Damon and Xavier Nady can't get to their fortunes.

Damon and Nady told FOXSports.com Friday morning that as a result their finances were frozen because of money they have with a Stanford company.

"I can't pay bills right now," the 35-year-old Damon told the website.

"That started on Tuesday. I had to pay a trainer for working out during the offseason. I told him, 'Just hold on for a little bit, and hopefully, all this stuff gets resolved.'"

Said Nady: "I'm affected in some ways; I have the same [advisor] as Johnny,"

"He said I didn't have money with Stanford [investments]. But all my credit-card accounts are frozen right now because of that situation. I'm trying to get an apartment in New York. I can't put a credit card down to hold it."

I bet that trainer wouldn't postpone payment with many clients less pocketed than Damon.

Roberts staying in Baltimore

I like the Orioles's 4-year $40-million deal with Brian Roberts. He's a spark-plug type who turns 32 in the fall, but he's growing better with age, and seems to be in his prime.

The Orioles faced constant rumors about his availability, and now that they've locked up a good second baseman for years to come, they can focus on pitching and power hitting.

Barnett on Texas radio

Dave Barnett joined the Texas Rangers radio broadcast team. Barnett does a nice job, although he seems slightly surprised by everything that happens during a game. That's better than Rangers TV play-by-play man Josh Lewin, who just seems constantly overwhelmed.

No Marlins deal, so Pedro to Mets?

Pedro Martinez will not be pitching for the Florida Marlins in 2009.

On Saturday night, a report on ESPNdeportes.com stated the Marlins had discussions with agent Fernando Cuza regarding Martinez. The report added Florida may have begun preliminary contract talks, and that the two sides were expected to continue talking this week.

As of late Sunday afternoon, the Marlins were not considered a possible fit.

Martinez has a home in Miami, and he has expressed privately a desire to pitch for the Marlins. On Monday, Cuza is expected to have discussions with the Mets about a possible return to New York. The right-hander also is expected to test the free-agent market.

Hampered by injuries last year, Martinez was 5-6 with a 5.61 ERA in 20 starts. He threw 109 innings.

It's either Pedro was asking for too much, or Florida doesn't believe he's healthy, because they need some help in the rotation. Sergio Mitre is out for 50 games, and that means the Marlins can use a live arm. Maybe Pedro doesn't have one, or at least not enough of one.

Coming to america

Lose a long-standing ace (John Smoltz), sign a Japanese ace (Kenshin Kawakami). Kawakami brings a ton of success to Atlanta.

Kawakami, the 2004 Central League Most Valuable Player, has a 112-82 career record with a 3.22ERA in 11 seasons in Japan. He was 9-5 with a 2.30ERA for the Chunichi Dragons in 2008, despite missing several weeks with a back strain.

The 5-foot-10 right-hander would be an important addition to a Braves rotation that will be without John Smoltz, who has reached a preliminary agreement with the Boston Red Sox on a one-year, $5.5 million contract.

Smoltz certainly has a better track record in MLB than Kawakami, who's never thrown a pitch on North American soil. Having good stuff, despite his diminutive frame, expect Kawakami to succeed like many other Japanese aces.

Broxton is closer material

If Jonathan Broxton is the Dodgers closer this year, is that such a bad thing? Losing out in the Trevor Hoffman sweepstakes might leave the Dodgers with less depth in the 'pen, but Broxton is strong and talented. He's certainly more than capable of handling the closer role.

Broxton struck out 88 batters in 69 IP in 2008. He saved 14 games while filling in as closer. He's a no-brainer to star in the position with his 3.02 ERA and a 1.174 WHIP last season.

If you can't beat 'em...

Sign away their players. Boston, out-hustled for first in the American League East by the Tampa Bay Rays and then again in the ALCS, will sign former Rays outfielder Rocco Baldelli. He'll play a backup role.

The Red Sox have been looking for a right-handed hitting fourth outfielder this offseason but their interest in Baldelli was tempered by the mitochondrial disorder from which the Cumberland, R.I., product was believed to have suffered. The disease causes a person to tire more easily and recover more slowly.

A re-evaluation this offseason determined Baldelli suffers from a less serious and more treatable form of channelopathy.

Hard to call Baldelli a difference-maker for the BoSox, but if he's healthy, he's pretty good. His loss won't break the Rays, who were without his services save for a month of games last season.

Fantasy Impact: He's a sleeper. Baldelli is considered a talent, but his health issues hold him back. Don't draft him, but don't leave him off your radar, either.

Brewers sign Hoffman

The Brewers sign closer Trevor Hoffman to a one-year $6M deal.

Hoffman's numbers aren't what they were in the early part of his fabled career, but he's averaged over 50 appearances the past five seasons. The 41-year-old struck out 38 batters in 45.1 IP in 2008, and while he saved just 30 games, that total should go up on a winning team.

Fantasy Impact: Hoffman's getting up there in age, and he's not nearly as dominant as he once was. He's still Trevor Hoffman, however, and he's better than any option the Brewers had last year. Expect Hoffman to save over 30 games, but back him up with another able-bodied closer.

Cubs, Tribune Co. down to three

The Chicago Tribune is down to the final three bidders for the Cubs, and a decision could come any day.

While all three seem solid candidates, I'm struck by the quote on Tom Ricketts:

"There are a lot of people in this world that would say Tom Ricketts is their best friend," said Curt Conklin, a college roommate who has worked at Ameritrade and Incapital. "If you wanted to go have a beer, Tom was there.

He sounds perfect for the North side.

Rangers eyeing Buchholz

The Boston Red Sox roster now features a smorgasboard of starting pitching thanks to the signing of John Smoltz. Mike Hindman of the Dallas Morning News believes the Rangers are after fading phenom Clay Buchholz, who would seem to be one of the odd men out in the Red Sox roatation this year.

The prevailing thought has long been that Texas wants the Nederland, Texas native Buchholz (Nolan Ryan let it slip that he thought Buchholz would look good in a Rangers uniform) and Boston wants the Carrollton native Taylor Teagarden.

Both Texas and Boston have given indication that those players are not available. My guess -- and it's just a guess -- is that Jon Daniels and Theo Epstein are quibbling over what extra piece(s) Texas would have to add to Jarrod Saltalamacchia in order to get Buchholz.

How this all plays out for Texas may depend on what happens with veteran catcher Jason Varitek. If Boston can land him on a two year deal, I suspect that they will pull back, limp along with the declining leader for another couple of years and then pounce on Minnesota catcher Joe Mauer when he becomes a free agent after the 2010 season.

I'm not sure teams think as far ahead as 2011 on free agent signings, but who knows? Buchholz for Saltalamacchia seems good to me straight up. Texas shouldn't not throw in more unless it's on the cheap.

On second thought...

Given his reduced production over the past few years in New York, I'm convinced Jason Giambi's return to Oakland is fueled by one thing: he thinks BALCO is still open.

Romero saga strange

Not only did MLB suspend Phillies pitcher J.C. Romero for a banned steroid that wasn't on the bottle of his supplement of choice, the league also attempted to stop him from playing in the World Series.

But if MLB had its druthers, Romero never would have thrown a pitch in the postseason. A first-time positive test carries a 50-game suspension, which may be appealed. Aware that an appeal process would last well into the postseason and push any suspension back to opening day 2009, baseball took an unusual step and offered to cut Romero's suspension in half to prevent him from playing in the postseason.

"We generally do not negotiate discipline in the drug area," Manfred said. "If he appealed it would go beyond the World Series. We offered to reduce the suspension to avoid him being in the World Series.

"I think a scientist will tell you that the [banned] substance was no longer in [Romero's] system, but the appearance of it - you prefer to avoid. With any drug program, the goal is to remove the athlete as quickly as possible."

Asked if he believed the Phils' World Series title was tainted, Manfred said "No."

Why all the odd and special treatment in this case? Baseball never seemed quick to suspend a player in the past. Appeals almost always drag on for days and weeks.

Cubs, Peavy might still be possible

Jim Hendry made it clear in a Tuesday conference call that he's not done looking for starting pitching. The obvious question - is Hendry still working to acquire San Diego dynamo Jake Peavy?

The biggest payroll obstacle in taking on the $63 million Peavy is guaranteed for the life of his contract remains the Cubs' 2010 projections. None of the payroll-clearing deals of the last week did anything for 2010, and that means the flexibility to add Peavy probably doesn't exist without a nod from the team's new ownership group.

Selection of a winning bid for the club is said to be close -- perhaps by the end of next week -- and that might be just in time for the Cubs' front office to make a deal before spring training.

Also, the Cubs acquired three well-regarded pitching prospects from the Cleveland Indians in the Mark DeRosa trade last week, giving them deeper reserves of young talent to help pull off a trade.

But the biggest impediment to a deal might be the Padres' willingness to trade their ace, considering their own potential sale to Jeff Moorad's group of investors. Under financial pressures related to a divorce, the Padres' owners had ordered payroll cuts that led to aggressive shopping of Peavy. Some have speculated Moorad won't want to trade one of the team's most valuable commodities.

If Hendry can't land Peavy, plenty of free-agent pitchers remain on the market, although Derek Lowe is pricing himself beyond reason. Productive innings-eaters such as Braden Looper and Tim Redding more likely would fit the Cubs' needs.

On the conference call, Hendry did not indicate that ownership would allow him to spend more money, but he did say the Cubs are no longer positioning themselves against teams in their division. Hendry said the team is aiming higher than that these days. He might be asking for the extra money. Looper, Redding, et al just won't cut it in Chicago these days.

Brewers closing in on closers

The ongoing saga that is the Milwaukee Brewers bullpen continues to twist in the wind. Rumors of Trevor Hoffman blowing in from San Diego were one thing. Now, from the East, like a cold Nor'easter comes injury-ravanged Chad Cordero into the conversation.

The Brewers have been tracking his rehabilitation since the Washington Nationals nontendered Cordero last month, and have already seen him throw at least once.

The Brewers have been linked to Cordero before, once rejecting a trade offer that would have sent Cordero to Milwaukee for second baseman Rickie Weeks during the 2007 Winter Meetings. That was at the height of his run as the Nationals' closer, a four-year period from 2003-07 in which Cordero notched 127 saves. Along the way, before his 26th birthday, he became the second-youngest player in Major League history to reach the 100-save plateau (Francisco Rodriguez owns that title, recording his 100th save as a 25-year-old).

I understand the attraction, but hasn't Milwaukee learned about shaky closers from their 2008 mess at the back of the bullpen? Eric Gagne and company proved more to be stooges than musketeers or even amigos. Now Brewers candidates Hoffman (aging) and Cordero (injured) offer them little in terms of probable stability at a position that demands it. Good luck!

Cap hall of fame voting

ESPN's Jim Caple makes a weak plug for Bert Blyleven's election to the baseball hall of fame. It isn't strong enough. Blyleven is not a hall of famer in my mind.

Here's an idea: rather than allow revisionist history to decide who does or doesn't make it to the hall, lets cap hall of fame voting for a period of 15 years after a player leaves baseball. That gives voters 10 years to decide whether a player is worthy of Cooperstown. What better a time to deem a player hall-worthy than the 15 years following his career? His performance is still fresh in voters' minds, not faded like the yellowing papers and anachronistic yesteryear statistics voters have to mull over to elect players they've never seen.

The debates on older players like Blyleven and Ron Santo are tiresome. Let's move on.

A's get a C for this move

I'm not quite sure what the A's are thinking bringing in both Jason Giambi and Matt Holliday as it seems a divergent path from GM Billy Beane's "Moneyball" philosophy, but hey, it's interesting to see Oakland acquire veterans rather than trade them away. Here's one explanation from the San Francisco chronicle on the Giambi move:

The Giambi signing, though, is as useful for the team's twin goals in 2009 - to score four runs per game and to actually have recognizable human beings doing so. There is, as Lew Wolff will tell you, nothing worse in the game than players you don't know doing not enough to make you care.

And because he costs one-fifth the current asking (but not taking) price Ramirez is demanding, Giambi can fail in Oakland by being only one or more of the following three things:

-- Finished as a hitter.

-- Nostalgic for the Yankees.

-- Caught wearing the gold thong in front of his locker.

We're not sure if the signing is fully and solely Beane's idea, although it does have that Frank Thomas/remainder bin feel to it.

Ah, yes. Frank Thomas. I forgot Beane brought Fading Frank to town, too.

Fantasy Impact: It's a stretch to say Giambi is no longer productive, but an even bigger stretch to believe he's still a top fantasy performer. He's productive, but he can really hurt you in batting average. An even further slide by the 34-year-old-to-be could be disasterous if taken too early in a fantasy draft. Giambi is probably most safely taken just outside of the first 8 rounds.

Marquis' Rockies role

The Cubs trade of Jason Marquis for Luis Vizcaino is little more than a salary dump for the Cubs, who acquire a potential setup-type reliever in Vizcaino. Marquis, who earns $9.8 million in 2009, was just to expensive to keep.

Fantasy Impact: Despite his mediocre 4.55 career ERA, Marquis always seems to find a way to win. He's always played for winners, and that helps. If the Rockies can recapture a little magic from 2007, Marquis might be a nice pickup for a fantasy team as a spot starter who is likely to beat lower-end teams on a regular basis.

Vizcaino is nothing more than a middle-reliever. The Cubs have both Carlos Marmol and Kevin Gregg to handle closing duties.

Join the dark side

When Beltway Boy Mark Teixeira officialy joined the Bronx Bombers on Tuesday, he may have burned his bridge to hometown Baltimore forever. Then he turned the screws in that coffin even tighter, saying he used to wear a Yankees cap to Orioles games as a child.

"You know what the coolest part is going to be?" he said. "I'm going to get a chance to be the first first baseman that the Yankees have in the new stadium. And, you know, the Bleacher Bums in right are going to do the roll call. That's going to be pretty sweet. Hopefully, we're going to be four games up in the division at the time, and are already rolling, and the fans here in New York will be pumped."

Sounds like a kid on Christmas.

Fantasy Impact: Teixeira hitting left-handed at New Yankee Stadium should benefit from the short porch in right field. He's a special talent, albeit a streaky one. His draft stock has to go up in any draft considering the talent that will be around him. Expect a .300-110-35-120 line from him by season's end.

Mistakes by lake?

The Cleveland Indians are assembling the all-what-if free agents. Kerry Wood, Mark DeRosa and now pitcher Carl Pavano give Cleveland a threesome of as many questions as answers heading into spring training.

Wood established himself as a closer last year, but there will always be health qustions with him. Can DeRosa's career year with the Cubs be replicated in 2009? Pavano is a health nightmare. Somebody must own a voodoo doll of him.

The Yankees paid $39.95 million to Pavano, who made just 26 starts in four seasons because of injuries. His contract with the Indians includes incentives beginning with his 18th start and can grow to $5.3 million.

Pavano had reconstructive elbow surgery in 2007, when he was the unlikely opening-day starter for the Yankees after missing a full season. He returned last August and went 4-2 with a 5.77 earned run average in seven starts.

“He feels he’s in tremendous shape,” O’Connell said. “The Cleveland people were very impressed with his physique. He’s as strong as an ox.”

Strong like bull, but brittle like peanut brittle.

Fantasy Impact: Wood and DeRosa can put up solid numbers. Wood will get his 35 saves in Cleveland while DeRosa's versatility makes him attractive as a utility player. Pavano is an intriguing X-factor. Draft him late, hoping he can become a very low-cost 5th starter.

Mitre, Romero out 50 games

The Marlins and Phillies took hits to their pitching staffs with the 50-game suspensions of Sergio Mitre and J.C. Romero for the use of performance-enhancing drugs.

The Major League Baseball players union called the bans “unfair” because the relievers took supplements that failed to list a prohibited substance in its ingredients. A third-party arbitrator upheld Major League Baseball’s discipline, citing the sport’s drug agreement “no fault or negligence” standard, the union said in a statement.

“These players should not be suspended,” union general counsel Michael Weiner said. “Their unknowing actions plainly are distinguishable from those of a person who intentionally used an illegal performance-enhancing substance.”

Considering NFL players fought suspensions for unknown banned supplements in December, this could be players' attempt to fight back in baseball.

Baldelli gets new diagnosis

The ongoing health saga of Rocco Baldelli takes a twist for the better. It sounds like he might be able to treat his condition better after a new diagnosis.

In fact, a recent visit to the Cleveland Clinic led Baldelli's doctor there to conclude that his symptoms were more related to a set of diseases known as channelopathies than the more serious mitochondrial problems that Baldelli on Wednesday described as "the best diagnosis at the time."

"Basically, the situation has been clarified a little bit better because of further tests," Baldelli said by phone from Rhode Island. "It's positive news for my baseball career and my health."

Baldelli described channelopathy as "less severe and more treatable" than the mitochondrial disorder. According to MedicineNet.com, a channelopathy is a disease involving dysfunction of an ion channel for elements such as potassium, sodium, chloride and calcium.

Whatever the case, an improved Baldelli means an improved Tampa Bay Rays.

Pat "The Bat" in Tampa

Pat Burrell's addition in Tampa Bay will greatly help the young and improving Rays hit left-handed pitching. Burrell, however, is a better hitter than given credit for, and should play a constant role in the middle of Tampa's order.

He'll provide the righty bat to Carlos Pena's lefty bat, and while the two are streaky hitters around Evan Longoria, they should provide enough pop to keep the Rays dangerous. Burrell will also DH, leaving him with few or no fielding concerns.

Playing Games with Milton Bradley

How troubled a guy is Milton Bradley? He's got a lot of baggage, literally and figuratively, having worn out his welcome in six different cities over parts of nine MLB seasons.

That the Cubs picked him up will only add to odd drama which plays out on the North side of Chicago. Bradley should be an interesting addition, as the Cubs basically move the ever-stable Mark DeRosa to insert Bradley in right field. The move is a risk with both Bradley's mercurial personality swings and health problems (he's played 120 games or more just twice in his career).

That said, don't fault the Cubs for releasing DeRosa for Bradley. This is a move by a team trying to win it all. Despite a career year in 2008, DeRosa's right-handed bat was the weakest in the Cubs' murderers row featuring Derrek Lee, Aramis Ramirez, Alfonso Soriano and Geovany Soto. The need for a lefty power bat made him the most expendable, especially when the Cubs landed utility-man Aaron Miles to fill in around the infield.

Bradley hits from both sides, and has put up better numbers than DeRosa for his career. If he plays more than halves of seasons in Chicago, and is availble for the postseason, Cubs fans should be pretty happy.

One big concern, however, is the money the Cubs have tied up in Kosuke Fukudome and Bradley over the next three years. Fukudome signed a $48-million deal last year. Now Bradley's signed a three-year, $30-million deal. If this doesn't work out, the Cubs could sink rather fast.

Fantasy Impact:Expect Fukudome to slide to center and platoon with Reed Johnson or win the job outright. He's good enough to play the lions share in center, and when Johnson starts, Fukudome can slide to right and give Bradley rest. He should hit better than he did in 2007. Bradley is coming off a career year, but don't expect those numbers to necessarily falter. He's in a good lineup, and his lefty bat should be right in the middle of the noise. His attitude and his health could be the only things that hold him back. Treat both players as fourth outfielders with good upside.

Go East, middle-aged man

Former White Sox, Phillies and Padres infielder Tad Iguchi is apparently out of the MLB market and heading back to Japan. With a .232 average last year and declining numbers over the past few seasons, this makes sense. He's hit just 11 home runs since 2006.

Fantasy Impact:Iguchi was becoming a marginal player at best. He lost his starting job in Chicago, then failed to earn one in Philadelphia or San Diego. The 34-year-old is a backup when he's in the States, but it looks like he won't be this season.

That's last year's headline!

Forgive me, MLB.com, but your Yankees headline for today, "Reloaded Yankees have high expectations," could've been used in any of the past 12 January's. That is all.

Jagged little pill

Rob Neyer must've finally watched the Matrix after getting it stashed in his Christmas stocking. How else can he be referencing that nine-year-old film with a column on hall of fame voting? That said, I'm always the red pill type of guy.

Florida On My Mind

ESPN lists what to watch in MLB for 2009. The list is a good one, but perhaps the best item on it is the Florida Marlins and their pitching staff.

I can't get Bobby Cox's words out of my head. It was the last week of September. And here's what he said: "You know who's got the best starting pitching in our division? It's the Marlins. And it's not even close." Nobody, of course, was saying that about that team a year ago, when the Fish were getting ready to roll out a rotation that had won a total of 23 games the year before. But now, they have Ricky Nolasco, Josh Johnson, Chris Volstad, Anibal Sanchez and Andrew Miller lined up.

They have a collection of supersonic bullpen arms. They have Cameron Maybin moving into center. And Logan Morrison is just over the horizon, with the minor-league teenage home-run champ, Mike Stanton, right behind him. So despite all the Marlins' questions and inexperience, this is one dangerous team. I'm not sure if an 84-78 team qualifies as a "surprise" the way, say, the 2008 Rays did. But when a franchise with a sub-$40 million payroll looms as a major contender, that's always a "surprise" in my dictionary.
-- Jayson Stark

What team reinvents itself year after troubling year like the Florida Marlins? I think back to James Earl Jones soliloquy about America and baseball in Field of Dreams.

America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It's been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt, and erased again.

So have the Marlins, and they're still coming up with ways of reinventing themselves.

Flipping coin flips

Major league baseball is trying to come up with a new system to decide where to play one-game playoffs other than flipping a coin.

Jimmie Lee Solomon, MLB's executive vice president of baseball operations, said Tuesday at the Winter Meetings that he'll try to have a proposal ready for the next quarterly owners meetings on Jan. 15-16 in the Phoenix area. Instead of coin flips, the first tiebreaker to determine where a game would be played would be the head-to-head records of the competing clubs.

"Most people in the room kind of agreed with that," Solomon said when the matter was brought up at the General Managers meetings last month in Dana Point, Calif.

The custom has always been to flip a coin several weeks before the possible tiebreaker to determine which team might host.

There have been eight one-game tiebreakers for a postseason spot in Major League history, seven of them since 1969, when the multi-tiered playoff format went into existence.

Two of them have been the past two seasons. In 2007, the Padres lost the flip and traveled to Colorado, where they lost the National League's Wild Card berth to the Rockies, 9-8, in 13 innings. This year, the Twins lost the flip and went to Chicago, where the White Sox defeated them, 1-0, to win the American League Central title.

The Twins beat the White Sox in head-to-head games last season, and the fact that the playoff was played at U.S. Cellular Field irked Minnesota supporters.

Bet it's more complicated

The new era of sports betting would appear to be here. What's the catch?

Padres still working Peavy deal with Cubs

News on the Jake Peavy trade front out of San Diego says no deal is likely with the Cubs until after the winter meetings. Padres GM Kevin Towers, who's talked very freely about trading Peavy all offseason, was at it again on Tuesday.

"It looks more likely today," Towers said late Tuesday afternoon.

Towers, who has said a deal "definitely" would involve a third team, said talks "could speed up" soon if Cubs GM Jim Hendry can make a corresponding move that would allow him to assume Peavy's contract, which guarantees Peavy $63 million over the next four years.

But, he added, "Jim and I both kind of agree that if we can't come to some sort of agreement by Thursday, it's probably not going to happen."

The Cubs continue to try to work with the Phillies to move Mark DeRosa in order to free up salary, and a fourth team could get involved. Jason Marquis has also replaced Sean Marshall in the deal.

It sounds like something might get done, but if the teams continue to get hung up on the prospects involved in the deal, who knows? San Diego needs to get a haul if they're going to give up one of the top young pitchers in baseball.

K-Rod strikes it rich in NY

Francisco Rodriguez signed a three-year, $37-million deal with the Mets to become the team's closer. No surprise there.

Now we see if the Mets get a two-headed monster a the end of the 'pen down the stretch next season if Billy Wagner can return in September. That's considered a longshot, at least at this point.

Wood signs with Cleveland

In Cleveland, it's no more Joe Borowski, Rafael Betancourt, Masahide Kobayaski, Rafael Perez or Jensen Lewis in the closer role now that the Indians have landed Kerry Wood.

That means all the paper lions the Indians trotted out in the ninth inning last year can return to their more-comfortable setup roles in 2009. The Indians bullpen just got a great deal stronger.

Orioles trade Hernandez for Freel; Wieters to benefit

A busy day at the winter meetings with hardly anything getting done. One trade to comment on from Tuesday with the Orioles sending catcher Ramon Hernandez to the Reds for utilityman Ryan Freel and two minor leaguers. The Reds get their quality starting catcher while the Orioles will use Freel in center field or wherever they see fit.

Freel had mixed emotions about the trade.

"It's hard to say right now," he said on a conference call. "A piece of me feels excitement and a piece of me is upset about the relationship I've had with Cincinnati. It's tough. One thing in life is you can't look in the past. You have to look in the future. I'm torn."

Freel said he had already spoken with MacPhail, but they didn't go into specifics about what Freel's role would be next season. MacPhail said Freel would play some in center field.

"They're excited to have me," Freel said. "I'm looking forward to a healthy upcoming season."

Freel's role as a heavily-used part-time player probably won't change much, and Hernandez should continue to be an above-average offensive catcher, even if he hit just .257 in 2008.

The most intriguing aspect of this deal is Matt Wieters, the Orioles likely replacement for Hernandez.

"This trade was more about Matt Wieters, frankly," MacPhail said. "It had been our goal to make sure we could introduce Matt into the major league scene somewhere over the course of the '09 season, not necessarily to start right away, but we thought he could handle it eventually after a little time in Triple-A possibly under his belt. We knew that would create a situation where we were going to have to split some playing time with him and Ramon, and we knew Ramon wouldn't be happy about that."

Wieters looks like the real deal. He's 6'5, 230, bats both, and hit .355 with 27 homers between Class A and Double-A. He's going to be coveted on fantasy draftboards as a potential breakthrough player in 2009.