 1. Red Sox optimistic about signing Beckett
2. Giants not signing Sandoval long-term
3. Blalock could be headed to Rays
4. Dodgers not signing a catcher
5. Rockies closer returns to mound
6. Rangers' Hamilton: DH today?
7. Jimenez big surprise for Marlins at third base
8. Dodgers' Anderson at the end of his line?
1. Red Sox optimistic about signing Beckett
Boston.com is reporting Josh Beckett(notes), the 29-year-old hurler who has won 106 games and lost only 68 since he debuted in the big leagues in 2001, becomes a free agent at year's end and the Boston Red Sox are doing all they can to keep that from happening, according to the Boston Globe.
The talks have started pretty smoothly, according to a source of the paper's, and it is marked by hopefulness and supposed productivity.
One thing Beckett will likely have to agree to in order to make the big bucks for a long time is some kind of medical language in the contract to protect the team from losing him to a bad right shoulder, according o the Globe. When the Red Sox signed John Lackey(notes) this offseason for five years and $82 million, the Sox threw in the provision that Lackey will have to pitch a sixth year at the league-minimum salary if he gets Tommy John surgery at some point in the first five years of the deal. And J.D. Drew(notes) apparently has some sort of similar deal with J.D. Drew if he hurts his shoulder. Plus, the team wouldn't sign Jason Bay(notes) supposedly because he wouldn't sign a deal with any kind of medical limits in it.
For now, though, hope springs eternal and talks for the 2003 World Series MVP (with the Florida Marlins) and 2007 ALCS MVP (with the Sox) have supposedly started off well.
To read more..
http://www.boston.com/sports/baseball/redsox/articles/2010/03/08/a_good_start_for_red_sox_beckett____on_contract_talks/
2. Giants not signing Sandoval long-term
The SF Gate is reporting The San Francisco Giants apparently aren't ready to sign Pablo Sandoval(notes) to a long-term deal even though he tore the cover off the ball in his first full year of the pros, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
The switch-hitting 23-year-old batted .330 with 25 homers, 90 RBIS, and 79 runs scored. But the Giants don't have history of signing players with less than two years of experience for long deals. The club is supposedly trying to get him signed to a one-year deal right now.
To read more..
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/giants/detail?blogid=22&entry_id=58625
3. Blalock could be headed to Rays
THe St. Petersburg Times is reporting It appears that Hank Blalock(notes) is getting closer to signing a deal with the Tampa Bay Rays, according to the St. Petersburg Times. It had been rumored last week that the Florida Marlins were also in the running for his services but it seems that the Rays have the more enticing offer for him.
The minor-league deal could be signed sometime today. You can be sure it'll be for a lot less than the $6 million he was paid by the Texas Rangers last season. The 29-year-old hit .234 for the Rangers but had 25 homers as well.
To read more..
http://twitter.com/SPTimesRays/status/10148270319
4. Dodgers not signing a catcher
Fox sports is reporting Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Russell Martin(notes) pulled his groin and will be out for four to six weeks but the team has no apparent interest in making a trade to find a solid backstop or signing a free agent to replace him in the interim, according to FOXSports.
Rookie A.J. Ellis(notes) is apparently going to get the lion's share of work to start the season and Brad Ausmus(notes) will act as his backup. The 28-year-old Missouri native Ellis had one RBI for the Dodgers last year and has been slaving in the minors since being drafted in 2003.
Free-agent catchers still out there are 37-year-old Paul Bako(notes), who hit .224 in 130 plate appearances for the Philadelphia Phillies last year, and Michael Barrett(notes), who only played in seven games for the Toronto Blue Jays last year due to injuries.
To read more..
http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/MLB-spring-training-buzz-021510
5. Rockies closer returns to mound
Fox sports is reporting The Rockies received good news on the bullpen front Sunday.
Closer Huston Street had a short session in the bullpen, the first time he had been on the mound since Feb. 26, and will have a more intense bullpen session Tueseday. Street had some shoulder tightness that forced him to slow down his spring activity.
Streets expects to make nine relief appearances this spring, which is in line with his past springs.
Setup man Rafael Betancourt was given anti-inflammatory medication to help ease tightness in his right shoulder.
TO read more..
http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/MLB-spring-training-buzz-021510
6. Rangers' Hamilton: DH today?
The Dallas Morning News is reporting "Josh Hamilton's return to the lineup could come sooner than the Texas Rangers had expected.
Hamilton said that if he feels good today, he'll be the team's designated hitter in a B game in Surprise.
Hamilton, who has been slowed by a left shoulder contusion, threw to bases Friday and took batting practice Saturday.
"I feel good," said Hamilton, who hadn't planned on throwing Friday."
To read more..
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/baseball/rangers/stories/030710dnsporangreport.3606bb5.html
7. Jimenez big surprise for Marlins at third base
The Miami Herald is reporting Florida Marlins' third baseman Jorge Jimenez is off to a surprising start. If all goes well for Jimenez over the next couple weeks, the Marlins could look a lot different on Opening Day than most expect them to -- with Jimenez at third and cleanup hitter Jorge Cantu back at first. The plan most expected entering the spring was for Cantu to move back across the diamond and for Logan Morrison, 22, and Gaby Sanchez, 26, to battle it out for the first-base job. But Gonzalez has made it clear since the start of the spring that "a dark horse" could emerge.
To read more..
http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/03/07/1517905_jimenez-aims-to-be-unexpected.html
8. Dodgers' Anderson at the end of his line?
The LA Times is reporting Garrett Anderson had his own Brett Favre dilemna over the offseason. When he left the Angels, he thought about retiring. "When all 30 teams don't call, that's just reality," he says. He got a chance, though, with the Braves, but then as it happens, his body betrayed him, a calf injury setting him back. But in July he came on to hit .326 with five homers, something still left in the tank. The phone went dead again at the end of the season. The last few weeks it was unavoidable. He was thinking retirement, although he never came close to making a public announcement. "I never will," he says. "I'll just disappear."
To read more..
http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-0307-simers-20100307,0,7124727.column
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