Lackey Knows All About The Pressure on Wacha

Michael Wacha will take the mound tonight for the St. Louis Cardinals in a win or go home Game 6 of the World Series. The rookie has performed admirably throughout the playoffs, but tonight he'll face the most pressure to date and he'll do it in front of a sold out, hostile Fenway Park crowd.

His opponent, Red Sox starter John Lackey, knows all about the pressures put on a rookie in a big game. It was 11 years ago that Lackey and fellow rookie Francisco Rodriguez (later to be known simply as "K-Rod") stood out in the World Series as rookie performers.

Lackey took the mound for the then Anaheim Angels on October 27, 2002, better known as the decisive 7th game of the 2002 World Series against the San Francisco Giants. Lackey had been far from good in his Game 4 start four days earlier - 5 IP 3 ER 9 H - but manager Mike Scioscia had faith in him to bring Lackey back on three days rest to start the finale on his home field.

Just as Wacha faces a veteran tonight, Lackey faced veteran Livan Hernandez, one of the heroes of the 1997 World Champion Florida Marlins, in Game 7. Lackey went just five innings again, but his removal from the ball game had more to do with pitching on three days rest than his performance. He departed with a 4-1 lead and had allowed just four hits and a walk. The bullpen did the rest and the Angels captured their first championship. (Hernandez, on the other hand, lasted only two official innings and allowed all five base runners he faced in the 3rd inning to reach base safely before he was pulled from the game.)

When he was queried Tuesday about the 2002 Series, Lackey didn't remember much and pretty much pushed the experience aside.

"That was a long time ago, man. I don't think that's going to play much into (Wednesday). I think most of those guys in that game aren't even playing anymore."

"I was trying to get five or six innings," he said, "and turn it over to those guys (Brendan Donnelly, K-Rod, and Troy Percival). My job was just basically not to screw it up."¹

Like Wacha, Lackey was instrumental in getting his team to the World Series in '02. He replaced Ramon Ortiz in the third inning of  Game 3 of the ALDS with his team down 6-1 and tossed three scoreless innings. The Angels rallied for a 9-6 win and a 2 to 1 advantage in the best of five series with the New York Yankees.

Lackey's seven innings of shutout ball gave the Angeles a commanding 3 games to 1 lead over the Minnesota Twins in the '02 ALCS. He allowed three hits, walked none, and struck out 7 for his first post-season win. His 86 pitch performance in the decisive game of the World Series quickly made him a household name.

Wacha has already gotten his 15 minutes of fame and then some. The rookie isn't going anywhere but up though after being the 19th pick in the first round of the 2012 MLB Amateur Draft. Wacha has allowed three earned runs in the 27 innings he's thrown over four post-season starts. He has struck out 28 hitters and earned the victory in those four contests.

His numbers include a Game 2 victory against Boston in which he allowed two earned runs in six innings pitched. Now he has a must win game to deal with just as his opposing pitcher did 11 years ago.


1 - newstelegram.com

FullCountPitch - The Closer Goes To The Movies

Baseball has progressed over the last few decades from starting pitchers going the distance to a closer entering the game as early as the 7th inning to a one inning job. (Occassionally entering the game in the 8th inning). For the most part, there is the one go-to guy on each squad, but this season a number of closers have struggled, causing their teams to use replacement closers or closer by committee. Let’s take a look at how each “last man standing” has held up so far in 2011.

Click here to read the rest of this free article.


Mariano Rivera Jonathan Papelbon Heath Bell Jonathan Broxton Ryan FranklinKevin Gregg Francisco Rodriguez Joakim Soria Huston Street.

TKO-Rod

It's been a strange season for the NY Mets, but things got a whole lot odder tonight. Closer Francisco Rodriguez was arrested after punching his father in-law in the face.

No word yet on what led to the scuffle, but several news sources have stated that K-Rod was removed by stadium security and was arrested. Meanwhile, K-Rod's F-I-L was pretty marked up and reportedly had a head injury.

K-Rod's lone comment on the situation was, "None of your fucking business".

Mo Closes Out Record All-Star Game

Another year, another American League All-Star win, this time by a 4-3 margin. It was the 13th straight AL win and the 4th straight 1-run win. Mariano Rivera pitched a 1-2-3 9th for an All-Star record 4th save.

The night began with a very lengthy ceremony, which based on Twitter responses seemed to be well received. It thought it was a little schmaltzy and over the top, but some of the sentiment seemed genuine.

Honoring some of the Cardinals greats - Bob Gibson, Stan "the Man" Musial, Lou Brock and others. Honoring normal citizens that have contributed to society was a nice touch, especially have all the ball players greet them and give them a pat on the back.

President Obama, in his White Sox jacket, throwing out the first pitch was great. Unfortunately, the morons at Fox (conspiracy?) didn't bother to show Albert Pujols catching the ball. It was finally shown on a replay much later in the game when the President stopped in to talk with Tweedledee and Tweedledum (McCarver and Buck). By the way Mr. President, I think you're great, but you throw like Johnny Damon.

As for the game itself, it moved quickly, which was fantastic, especially on the heels of the HR Derby debacle. The AL took a 2-0 lead in the first in part thanks to errors by David Wright (how does he win a Gold Glove with that tin arm?) and Albert Pujols (on a ball hit by Mark Teixeira). The most memorable moment of the 1st inning was also the most aggravating. NL starter Tim Lincecum hit Derek Jeter on the wrist. The ball may have gotten part of the bat, but it got part of the Captain too! Outrage throughout Tweetville and living room and bars across the Tri-State area.

Roy Halladay moved down the NL in the 1st, but ran into 2-out trouble in the 2nd. Wright reached on a pop fly single and Shane Victorino and Yadier Molina followed with singles of their own. Wright scored and the "Flying Hawaiian" came home when center fielder Josh Hamilton's throw hit him in the back and got away. Prince Fielder's ground-rule double plated Molina for a 3-2 NL lead. But that would be it for the NL for the night and, in fact, the next 18 NL batters would go down without reaching safely.

The AL tied it up in the 7th against Chad Billingsley when Carl Crawford led off the inning with a single, and Joe Mauer doubled home Jeter, who had forced out Crawford.

Crawford was the defensive hero in the bottom half of the inning when he reached over the wall to take back a home run by Brad Hawpe, who tagged Jonathan Papelbon's delivery. The next hitter, Miguel Tejada, drilled one to right, but the ball seemed to die and landed in the glove of Adam Jones.

The AL took the lead for good against Heath Bell in the 8th thanks to Justin Upton playing out of position. Upton, normally a right fielder, was in lef field and looked totally clueless on Curtis Granderson's drive to the wall in left-center. Instead of a double, Granderson was able to cruise into third with a one out triple.

Victor Martinez was intentionally walked to set up a double play, but Jones delivered the run with a deep fly ball to right.

Joe Nathan ran into his own troubles in the bottom of the 8th when he issued a 2-out walk to Adrian Gonzalez and Orlando Hudson singled him to third. But after Hudson stole 2nd base, Nathan struck out pinch-hitter Ryan Howard with a nasty breaking pitch to preserve the lead.

The Mets' Francisco Rodriguez retired the AL in order in the top of the 9th and then it was time for the Sandman. And Mo didn't disappoint. He retired Upton on a ground out, struck out Hawpe with a filthy cutter and got Tejada on a game ending pop up to 2nd base.

Another year, another win. Carl Crawford was named the game's MVP for his catch and the start of the game tying rally.

Next year's game will be in Anaheim.

Hey Now Your'e An All-Star

So after sitting through part or all, or none for that matter, of last night's horrendous HR Derby, tonight Fox will do it's best to ruin an easy to ruin event - the All-Star game. The game is dull no matter how you slice it, but when you add the idiots from Fox to the mix, it's barely tolerable.

Derek Jeter, Mark Teixeira, Mariano Rivera, David Wright, and K-Rod are the locals involved, with all the on-closers starting at their respective positions. Marc Carig of the Star Ledger has a nice feature in today's paper on Jeter's longevity and making the All-Star team at 35, which Jeter considers young.

If you remember last year, big mouth Jon Papelbon caused controversy by saying that he, not Mo, should pitch the 9th inning in the game. This year, Pap has wised up and said Mo is da man.

"To me, there's no doubt in my mind that Mo should close," Papelbon said. "Do I want to close? Of course. Am I going to get to? Probably not. I'm going to go into (manager) Joe Maddon's office and say, 'When you want me, I'll be in the bullpen ready to pitch.'"

Rivera laughed after being told of Papelbon's comment.

"Jonathan is a great guy," Rivera said. "He has his own mind, but he means well."

Starting lineups for tonight:

AL - Evan Longoria was scratched due to a finger infection, so the lineup may change

RF Ichiro
SS Derek Jeter
C Joe Mauer
1B Mark Teixeira
LF Jason Bay
CF Josh Hamilton
3B Michael Young
2B Aaron Hill
P Roy Halladay


NL

SS Hanley Ramirez
2B Chase Utley
1B Albert Pujols
RF Ryan Braun
LF Raul Ibanez
3B David Wright
CF Shane Victorino
C Yadier Molina
P Tim Lincecum

Mo Saves 500th

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
NY Yankees	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1		4	4	0
NY Mets	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	0		2	5	0

Mariano Rivera earned his 500th career save tonight in the Yankees 4-2 win over the New York Mets. Making it even more memorable was the first career RBI of Rivera's illustrious career.

Francisco Rodriguez walked Rivera with the bases loaded and 2 outs in the top of the 9th for a big insurance run. Rivera came on in the 8th inning to strike out Omir Santos with two men aboard and then picked up his milestone stay by retiring Alex Cora on a game ending ground out to Robinson Cano.

The save also preserved Chien-Ming Wang's first victory of the season. Rivera becomes just the second player in major league history, along with Trevor Hoffman, to earn 500 saves.

Box Score

Yankees Rout Mets in Series Finale

Santana not so Smooth.

This had to be the oddest Yankees-Mets interleague series to date. You had the Luis Castillo (Cas-tE-yo) error on Friday night that gave the Yankees an improbable victory.

Mets fans figured they were in trouble on Saturday with Fernando Nieve on the hill, but instead, he and another long time minor leaguer, Omir Santos, dominated the Yankees in a Mets win.

So you had to think that today, Sunday, the Mets would take the series with their ace Johan Santana going up against A.J. Burnett. The Yankees right-hander had been shredded in Boston and had been shaky of late, while Santana is one of the top 3 pitchers in all of baseball.

So what happened? The Yankees won in a 15-0 blowout of course. Santana was charged with 9 earned runs, the highest total of his career, in just 3 official innings. He faced 5 batters in the 4th and didn't retire any of them.

Burnett was the complete opposite of Santana on the day. He threw 7 shutout innings and got out of a bases loaded, no-out jam in the 3rd inning when the score was just 4-0. He also gave the bullpen a much needed rest.

The Yankees put 4 runs on the board on Santana in the 2nd inning with Francisco Cervelli and Derek Jeter delivering RBI singles and Johnny Damon driving in a pair of runs with a single of his own.

Burnett did his Houdini act in the 3rd after a pair of walks and a single. He struck out Alex Cora and Fernando Martinez, and got Carlos Beltran on a line out to Jeter. Burnett was fired up by his great escape and so were his teammates.

They sent Santana to an early shower in the 4th after he allowed a 2-run home run to Hideki Matsui and an another RBI single to Jeter. Brian Stokes was greeted by Damon with an RBI double and an infield single by Mark Teixeira. An RBI ground out drove in another run and then Robinson Cano crushed a Stokes deep into the bleachers in right-center field for an 11-0 Yankees lead. Melky Cabrera capped off the inning with a 2-run double that hit the top of the wall in right-center and came back into play. He was thrown out trying to stretch it into a triple or the inning might still be going.

In all, 12 batters, 9 runs, 8 hits, 3 walks (2 by Nick Swisher), and 2 home runs.
Ramiro Pena added and RBI single and Cano a sac fly with the bases loaded in the 7th for the 15-0 finale.

Game Notes

The Yankees have a much earned/needed day off on Monday before starting a series with the Washington Nationals Tuesday night.

Jerry Manuel was ejected from the ball game after he came out to protest the ball and strike calls by home plate ump Jim Wolf. Both Alex Cora and David Wright were upset with him too when they struck out.

The YES camera crews caught relievers Brian Bruney and Francisco Rodriguez "discussing" Bruney's comments about the Mets closer. Several players got in between them when K-Rod got heated up. According to Jon Heyman, several Yankees stopped a Bruney interview after the game when he was asked about the incident by the media.

We hate K-Rod's end game histrionics as much as anyone, but Bruney, who has had a mediocre career, needs to shut the hell up.

Pop Goes Castillo

Some 10 1/2 hours later it is still hard to believe how last night's Yankees-Mets game ended. We do feel bad for Luis Castillo. If it had happened to a Dustin Pedroia or Kevin Millar, etc., so be it. Castillo has had a tough time of it at Shea/Citi Field since Omar Minaya ill advisedly signed him to a new 4-year deal at the end of the 2007 season.

Castillo hasn't hit much, has bad knees, and has had stuff happen to him like what occurred last night. Well, nothing quite like that.

In case you missed, the Yankees played a miserable game last night. Poor starting pitching, poor relief pitching, no timely hitting outside of Hideki Matsui's 3-run birthday blast. The only thing missing was Nick Swisher getting doubled off a base. They deserved to lose and then they didn't.

The Yankees were down to their last out. Derek Jeter had reached on a 1-out single, but Francisco Rodriguez struck out pinch-hitter Johnny Damon for the 2nd out. That's when things started getting interesting.

Even though K-Rod had great success against Mark Teixeira, 2-19 lifetime, he didn't want anything to do with the Yankees hottest hitter. After falling behind in the count 3-1, the Mets opted to intentionally walk Teixeira to face Alex Rodriguez. Also something you will not see every day.

But in some ways it made sense. A-Rod had been in a 2-17 slide and didn't have any career success against K-Rod either. The Mets closer again fell behind 3-1 and then threw a strike that A-Rod popped up. As he jogged to first, A-Rod smashed his bat on the ground in disgust.

As Castillo settled under the pop up, it seemed like it moved on him a little bit, possibly from a slight breeze. Even though it looked like the game was over, Jeter and Teixeira ran hard around the bases. And then the game was over. In the blink of an eye...or more precisely in the heel of a glove.

The ball bounced off Castillo's mitt, moved agonizingly past his eyes and outstretched bare hand and fell to the ground. Jeter easily scored the tying run. As Teixeira chugged towards 3rd, Castillo grabbed the ball off the grass and from his knees through to 2nd base, conceivably to keep A-Rod from advancing.

But those extra seconds allowed Teixeira to slide home safely ahead of Alex Cora's relay throw. A wild celebration ensued as K-Rod stood with his hands on his head, his first blown save of the season not really being a blown save.

To paraphrase John Sterling, "That is baseball...."

K-Rod, A-Rod, E-4

You'll be hard pressed to find anyone who saw a game end the way the Yankees-Mets game ended this evening. Mets up by 1, 2 on, 2 outs, bottom of the 9th. K-Rod facing A-Rod. A routine pop-up to 2nd baseman Luis Castillo. And nothing was routine.

Castillo dropped the ball. Derek Jeter scored easily with the tying run. Mark Teixeira ran hard from 1st base and was waved home by 3rd base coach Rob Thomson. To make matters worse for Castillo, he threw to 2nd base. Teixeira easily beat the relay home and the Yankees pulled out the most improbable victory imaginable, 9-8.

Highs and Lows of Opening Day

While CC Sabathia and the Yankees would like to forget their opening day, they aren't the only ones.

It wasn't a good day for the aces:

Reigning CY Young Award winner Cliff Lee was tagged for 7 runs in 5 innings.

Tigers #1 starter Justin Verlander gave up 8 runs in 3.2 innings (and killed my fantasy team)

Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay won, but gave up 5 runs in 7 innings.

NL CY Young runner up Brandon Webb allowed 6 earned runs in 4 innings.


But it wasn't all bad.

The King, Felix Hernandez, allowed one run over 8 innings in the Mariners 6-1 win over the Twins.

Carlos Zambrano looked dynamite in his 6 innings of work in the Cubs 4-2 victory over the Astros.

Joe Saunders tossed 6.2 innings of 3-hit ball as the Angels blanked the A's 3-0.

Kevin Millwood tossed 7 innings of 5 hit ball as the Rangers crushed the Indians 9-1.

Hiroki Kuroda out pitched Jake Peavy as the Dodgers dropped the Padres 4-1.


The Hitting Heros

Arizona's Felipe Lopez and Tony Clark became just the second teammates, joining the Yankees Bernie Williams and Jorge Posada, to homer from each side of the plate. They also became the first teammates to perform the feat on opening day. (Are we the only ones who think of that unfortunate ground-rule double by Tony Clark in the 2004 ALCS, every time TC's name is mentioned?)

Toronto's Adam Lind had 4 hits and drove in a career high 6 runs. His big game included a home run.

Marlins' superstar shortstop Hanley Ramirez belted a grand slam and drove in 5 runs. Guess he got over having to get his hair cut.

Ken Griffey Jr. homered in his return to Seattle. That's 612 and counting.


The much anticipated debuts

The Mets new bullpen shone immediate. J.J. Putz pitched a scoreless eight inning, setting things up for Francisco Rodriguez's first "thank the big guy upstairs afterwards" save.

Jason Giambi went 0-3 for Oakland. Bobby Abreu was 1-4 in LA. Milton Bradley was 0-3 for Chicago. Pudge Rodriguez was 0-4 for Houston.


Are we a jinx?

Yesterday we picked CC Sabathia (12.46 ERA) for AL CY Young, Mark Teixeira (0-4) for AL MVP, and Jason Motte (1 IP 4 ER Blown Save, Loss) for NL Rookie of the Year.


It's a new day

Plenty more games on tap today, with the Royals-White Sox and Rays-Red Sox making up postponed openers.

Winter Meetings- That's a Wrap

The winter meetings finished up in Las Vegas yesterday with the locals coming out the big winners. We give the Mets the top nod for addressing their bullpen needs by acquiring not one, but two closers. The signing of Francisco Rodriguez is, for now at least, the signing of the off-season. Why you ask?

K-Rod is coming off a record breaking season, where he smashed the single season saves mark. The perfect time to become a free agent. Well that is unless the economy is in the tank. Bingo. K-Rod was hoping for a 5 year deal, worth more per season than Mariano Rivera currently receives ($15 million) from the Yankees.

With offers not reaching the level he was looking for, K-Rod "settled" for a 3 year, $37 million contract. A bargain by today's standards. A win-win for the Mets who needed a big time closer after Billy Wagner went down with an elbow injury during the '08 season. The Mets have their closer for the next 3 years, and, keep this in mind, he's just 26 years old.

The Mets set up situation was in shambles last year. In acquiring J.J. Putz, they not only got a reliever who can close if needed, but they dumped ineffective, whiney, Aaron Heilman in the process. They gave up a lot of players, but not all that much quality, at least none that how will have a big impact any time soon.

The Yankees are the number two winners because they nabbed the biggest prize. It took money and a loophole (an escape clause), but the Yankees got the pitcher they wanted in CC Sabathia. Sabathia is not Johan Santana, but my waiting a year the Yankees didn't have to give up any of their chips to get a top notch left-hander. A big plus is that Sabathia is just 28 years old and has shown tremendous durability.

The Yankees didn't get a deal done with free agent A.J. Burnett, but may be very close according to Joel Sherman and George King of the NY Post. An unidentified Yankee player told the pair that Burnett told him they would soon be teammates and that he (Burnett) really wanted to come to New York.

A 5 year contract worth over $80-$90 million can generate a lot of excitement.


During a Hot Stove addition of Baseball Tonight last evening, Karl Ravech remarked that were no losers, per se, at the meetings, since the off-season still has a long way to go and lot of moves can still be made. He was wrong in one respect- there was one loser and his name is Manny.

Manny being Manny again? Perhaps. Ramirez is "threatening" retirement because he's not finding any offers to his liking. So go ahead and retire. Are owners suddenly supposed to feel bad for you? "NO, we can't let this happen, give him all our millions!!!" Be very wary of signing Manny. Big bat, peanut brain.f

Winter Meetings- That's a Wrap

The winter meetings finished up in Las Vegas yesterday with the locals coming out the big winners. We give the Mets the top nod for addressing their bullpen needs by acquiring not one, but two closers. The signing of Francisco Rodriguez is, for now at least, the signing of the off-season. Why you ask?

K-Rod is coming off a record breaking season, where he smashed the single season saves mark. The perfect time to become a free agent. Well that is unless the economy is in the tank. Bingo. K-Rod was hoping for a 5 year deal, worth more per season than Mariano Rivera currently receives ($15 million) from the Yankees.

With offers not reaching the level he was looking for, K-Rod "settled" for a 3 year, $37 million contract. A bargain by today's standards. A win-win for the Mets who needed a big time closer after Billy Wagner went down with an elbow injury during the '08 season. The Mets have their closer for the next 3 years, and, keep this in mind, he's just 26 years old.

The Mets set up situation was in shambles last year. In acquiring J.J. Putz, they not only got a reliever who can close if needed, but they dumped ineffective, whiney, Aaron Heilman in the process. They gave up a lot of players, but not all that much quality, at least none that how will have a big impact any time soon.

The Yankees are the number two winners because they nabbed the biggest prize. It took money and a loophole (an escape clause), but the Yankees got the pitcher they wanted in CC Sabathia. Sabathia is not Johan Santana, but my waiting a year the Yankees didn't have to give up any of their chips to get a top notch left-hander. A big plus is that Sabathia is just 28 years old and has shown tremendous durability.

The Yankees didn't get a deal done with free agent A.J. Burnett, but may be very close according to Joel Sherman and George King of the NY Post. An unidentified Yankee player told the pair that Burnett told him they would soon be teammates and that he (Burnett) really wanted to come to New York.

A 5 year contract worth over $80-$90 million can generate a lot of excitement.


During a Hot Stove addition of Baseball Tonight last evening, Karl Ravech remarked that were no losers, per se, at the meetings, since the off-season still has a long way to go and lot of moves can still be made. He was wrong in one respect- there was one loser and his name is Manny.

Manny being Manny again? Perhaps. Ramirez is "threatening" retirement because he's not finding any offers to his liking. So go ahead and retire. Are owners suddenly supposed to feel bad for you? "NO, we can't let this happen, give him all our millions!!!" Be very wary of signing Manny. Big bat, peanut brain.f

Breaking News: Mets Get Their Closer

Ken Rosenthal is reporting that the Mets have indeed reached a contract agreement with free agent closer Francisco Rodriguez. The deal is reportedly worth $37 million over 3 years, and has a vesting option for a fourth year at $14 million.

Breaking News: Mets Get Their Closer

Ken Rosenthal is reporting that the Mets have indeed reached a contract agreement with free agent closer Francisco Rodriguez. The deal is reportedly worth $37 million over 3 years, and has a vesting option for a fourth year at $14 million.

Vegas Update - Day 2 8:20 AM EST

Jon Heyman of SI and Joel Sherman of the NY Post expect the Mets and free agent closer Francisco Rodriguez to work out a 3-year deal, worth app. $37 million, before the end of the winter meetings.

Rodriguez's agent, Paul Kinzer, said, "I am more optimistic than I have ever been" about finalizing a deal between the single-season save leader and the Mets.

It's hard to believe the Angels wouldn't match such an offer or bump it up a bit to keep K-Rod.

One team rep feels the Red Sox will sign Mark Teixeira. Why does that count any more than what we think?

These updates from Fox's Ken Rosenthal:

The Braves and Cards are trying to work out a deal that would send Rick Ankiel to Atlanta, but thus far the Cards are asking for Mike Gonzalez, and that's a no-go for Atlanta.

The Blue Jays are meeting with shortstop Rafael Furcal's agents, but the chance of signing the free agent are slim.

The Phillies are still looking at Delmon Young of the Twins, and have jumped into the Jake Peavy trade talks.

The Rangers are quietly shopping shortstop Michael Young according to an AL executive, so says Yahoo Sports' Tim Brown.

The Dodgers inked veteran Mark Loretta to a one year deal, meaning that Nomar's days in LA are numbered.

Vegas Update - Day 2 8:20 AM EST

Jon Heyman of SI and Joel Sherman of the NY Post expect the Mets and free agent closer Francisco Rodriguez to work out a 3-year deal, worth app. $37 million, before the end of the winter meetings.

Rodriguez's agent, Paul Kinzer, said, "I am more optimistic than I have ever been" about finalizing a deal between the single-season save leader and the Mets.

It's hard to believe the Angels wouldn't match such an offer or bump it up a bit to keep K-Rod.

One team rep feels the Red Sox will sign Mark Teixeira. Why does that count any more than what we think?

These updates from Fox's Ken Rosenthal:

The Braves and Cards are trying to work out a deal that would send Rick Ankiel to Atlanta, but thus far the Cards are asking for Mike Gonzalez, and that's a no-go for Atlanta.

The Blue Jays are meeting with shortstop Rafael Furcal's agents, but the chance of signing the free agent are slim.

The Phillies are still looking at Delmon Young of the Twins, and have jumped into the Jake Peavy trade talks.

The Rangers are quietly shopping shortstop Michael Young according to an AL executive, so says Yahoo Sports' Tim Brown.

The Dodgers inked veteran Mark Loretta to a one year deal, meaning that Nomar's days in LA are numbered.

Vegas Update - Day 1 8:15 EST

The big news tonight, if it is to be believed, is that the Braves are nearing an agreement with the #2 free agent pitcher, A.J. Burnett. That news comes courtesy of ESPN's Steve Phillips. While we take most of what Phillips usually says with a grain of salt, he's got Peter Gammons' blessing on this one.

ESPN cohorts Jayson Stark and Jerry Crasnick, however, don't believe the Braves are a sure thing and the Yankees might be willing to top the Braves offer.

Jon Heyman believes the Mets offer to K-Rod is a 2-year deal worth $24 million, with a vesting option for a third year. We don't see K-Rod jumping at that one.

Peter Abraham reports that the Yankes believe CC Sabathia's sincerity about the possibility of playing in New York.

The Washington Post's sources are telling them the Mets and Red Sox are talking about a deal that would send catcher Brian Schneider to Boston. Schneider was acquired by the Mets prior to the 2008 season.

The Seattle Times believes that a J.J. Putz deal to the Tigers could become a reality, which would really screw up our roto hopes that Fernando Rodney remains closer.

Vegas Update - Day 1 8:15 EST

The big news tonight, if it is to be believed, is that the Braves are nearing an agreement with the #2 free agent pitcher, A.J. Burnett. That news comes courtesy of ESPN's Steve Phillips. While we take most of what Phillips usually says with a grain of salt, he's got Peter Gammons' blessing on this one.

ESPN cohorts Jayson Stark and Jerry Crasnick, however, don't believe the Braves are a sure thing and the Yankees might be willing to top the Braves offer.

Jon Heyman believes the Mets offer to K-Rod is a 2-year deal worth $24 million, with a vesting option for a third year. We don't see K-Rod jumping at that one.

Peter Abraham reports that the Yankes believe CC Sabathia's sincerity about the possibility of playing in New York.

The Washington Post's sources are telling them the Mets and Red Sox are talking about a deal that would send catcher Brian Schneider to Boston. Schneider was acquired by the Mets prior to the 2008 season.

The Seattle Times believes that a J.J. Putz deal to the Tigers could become a reality, which would really screw up our roto hopes that Fernando Rodney remains closer.

Tuesday Hot Stove

Don't Do as I Say
We could use an umbrella to keep the rain off the stove. The Red Sox could use a swift kick in the ass. We don't want to hear any more garbage out of Boston about how the Yankees did this or did that. First it was complaining about how much money the Yankees spent and then the Red Sox started doling out huge deals. Now comes word the Red Sox are about to sign Japanese amateur Junichi Tazawa, violating an age old verbal agreement that the Major Leagues would not raid the Japanese amateurs.

The Yankees may have been looking into a deal as well, but publicly Brian Cashman stated it was a mistake for teams to take such an approach. The fall out from all this of course is that Japanese leagues could disrupt the US amateur draft by making huge offers to US college and high school kids.

Bing Stays Healthier
If the A's can reel in Rafael Furcal, they'll look to deal oft-injured, underachieving shortstop Bobby Crosby. The A's are said to be willing to pick up a good chunk of Crosby's $5.25 million salary.

You Can Never Have Too Many
Left-handers that is. The Cardinals are still finalizing a deal with reliever Trever Miller and have now made an offer to fellow free agent Arthur Rhodes. The Yankees will be disappointed to see him out of the AL.

Making a Pitch
The LA Times reports that the Angels have shifted focus from re-signing Mark Teixeira to addressing pitching needs. Translation - CC Sabathia.

You'll Look Great in Black and Orange
That may be one of the pitches the Orioles make towards free agent pitcher A.J. Burnett now that Baltimore is in the mix.

The Man with the X-Ray Eyes
The Mets have received the X-Rays from Francisco Rodriguez's medical records as they decide whether or not to spend big money on a closer.

Stot Unemployed
With a new manager in Seattle, pitching coach Mel Stottelmyre, still one of our favorites from those old bad Yankees teams, is out of a job. Stot worked one season on the M's staff. Perhaps something will open up with Joe Torre in LA.

UPDATE 5:00 PM
Rockies Try Not to Laugh at Mets
The Rockies have reportedly turned down a deal that would have sent Aaron Heilman to Colorado for Huston Street. Street isn't what he once was or what anyone thought he would be, but he's still a lot better than Heilman.

Tuesday Hot Stove

Don't Do as I Say
We could use an umbrella to keep the rain off the stove. The Red Sox could use a swift kick in the ass. We don't want to hear any more garbage out of Boston about how the Yankees did this or did that. First it was complaining about how much money the Yankees spent and then the Red Sox started doling out huge deals. Now comes word the Red Sox are about to sign Japanese amateur Junichi Tazawa, violating an age old verbal agreement that the Major Leagues would not raid the Japanese amateurs.

The Yankees may have been looking into a deal as well, but publicly Brian Cashman stated it was a mistake for teams to take such an approach. The fall out from all this of course is that Japanese leagues could disrupt the US amateur draft by making huge offers to US college and high school kids.

Bing Stays Healthier
If the A's can reel in Rafael Furcal, they'll look to deal oft-injured, underachieving shortstop Bobby Crosby. The A's are said to be willing to pick up a good chunk of Crosby's $5.25 million salary.

You Can Never Have Too Many
Left-handers that is. The Cardinals are still finalizing a deal with reliever Trever Miller and have now made an offer to fellow free agent Arthur Rhodes. The Yankees will be disappointed to see him out of the AL.

Making a Pitch
The LA Times reports that the Angels have shifted focus from re-signing Mark Teixeira to addressing pitching needs. Translation - CC Sabathia.

You'll Look Great in Black and Orange
That may be one of the pitches the Orioles make towards free agent pitcher A.J. Burnett now that Baltimore is in the mix.

The Man with the X-Ray Eyes
The Mets have received the X-Rays from Francisco Rodriguez's medical records as they decide whether or not to spend big money on a closer.

Stot Unemployed
With a new manager in Seattle, pitching coach Mel Stottelmyre, still one of our favorites from those old bad Yankees teams, is out of a job. Stot worked one season on the M's staff. Perhaps something will open up with Joe Torre in LA.

UPDATE 5:00 PM
Rockies Try Not to Laugh at Mets
The Rockies have reportedly turned down a deal that would have sent Aaron Heilman to Colorado for Huston Street. Street isn't what he once was or what anyone thought he would be, but he's still a lot better than Heilman.