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Pirates manager John Russell revealed today that he plans to bat the pitcher eighth in the lineup for most games this season, with shortstop Ronny Cedeno or his backup Bobby Crosby hitting ninth. Some lineup simulations have shown that the pitcher batting eighth rather than ninth can indeed lead to more runs, as having a…

President Barack Obama will throw out the ceremonial first pitch at the Nationals-Phillies game on Opening Day in Washington and commissioner Bud Selig will also be in attendance at Nationals Park. Obama probably won’t be wearing Nationals gear, however, because he previously threw out the first pitch to catcher Albert Pujols at last season’s All-Star…

Ron Gardenhire announced yesterday that the Twins will begin the season using a “closer-by-committee” approach with Joe Nathan out for the year following Tommy John elbow surgery: We are a committee. Our closer role is a committee. We’re going to try just about anything. I’ve never had to do it. It’s going to be an…

According to Jim Reeves of ESPNDallas.com the Rangers are “scouring other camps to try to find that right-handed hitting role player … to fill the role of backup first baseman/third baseman” and “keep coming back to” Mike Lowell. Reeves quotes a “club source” as saying that the Rangers “believe they can still basically get Lowell…

Joel Sherman of the New York Post notes that Johnny Damon and Yankees general manager Brian Cashman “met for about 10 minutes behind the batting cage yesterday.” They reportedly cleared the air following unsuccessful offseason negotiations that saw Damon end up with the Tigers. In fact, according to Sherman “the two parted with a hug”…

Lou Piniella announced this afternoon that Tom Gorzelanny and Carlos Silva will begin the season in the Cubs’ rotation, with Jeff Samardzija and Sean Marshall both heading to the bullpen. “Unfortunately, we only have two spots,” Piniella said, which is funny considering that one of those spots is going to a guy who went 5-18…

Roy Oswalt left today’s start against the Pirates with a strained hamstring and MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart reports that he’s flying to Houston to be examined by team doctors. Oswalt told McTaggart that the injury is “nothing major” and something he “could have gotten through” had it been the regular season, but general manager Ed Wade…

Earlier this week the Giants were said to be shopping Kevin Frandsen around and sure enough they just traded the 27-year-old infielder to the Red Sox for a player to be named later or cash. After missing all of 2008 with a ruptured Achilles’ tendon Frandsen hit .295/.352/.438 with 13 homers in 110 games at…

As if he needed another injury to come back from, Mike Lowell limped off the field today after fouling a ball off his leg and has been diagnosed with a left knee contusion. Ian Browne of MLB.com notes that “Lowell immediately fell to the ground and appeared to be in considerable pain” before being helped…

Just last week Dustin McGowan’s comeback from shoulder surgery was said to be going very well, but this morning manager Cito Gaston announced that he’s been shut down for at least two weeks. After watching McGowan pitch a two-inning simulated game last week Gaston noted that he “looked good” and “threw well, free and easy.”…

As a fat guy it amused me when the Dodgers re-signed Ronnie Belliard two months ago and included a clause that guaranteed his one-year, $825,000 contract only if the 5-foot-9 infielder weighed in at 209 pounds or less at some point during spring training. Sure enough Belliard weighed in at 208 pounds yesterday and earned…

Now that Jason Heyward has officially made the Braves it’s time to start thinking about what kind of rookie season he’s capable of putting together at age 20. Here are his projections from a few prominent sources: AVG OBP SLG OPS Baseball Prospectus .274 .345 .461 .806 Rotoworld Draft Guide .267 .343 .440 .783 Baseball…

Alex Gordon broke his right thumb on March 6 and manager Trey Hillman admitted yesterday that the Royals’ third baseman will begin the season on the disabled list. Gordon initially received a recovery timetable of 3-4 weeks, which gave him some chance to be ready for Opening Day, but Hillman explained that “it’s not going…

Tony La Russa said today that Yadier Molina is unlikely to play again this spring after straining his right oblique muscle running the bases yesterday, but added that “we have our fingers crossed for the early part of the season, maybe Opening Day.” Jason LaRue would step in as the Cardinals’ starter behind the plate…

After sitting out all of last season Jim Edmonds has successfully completed his comeback, with the Brewers adding him to the roster prior to the “out” clause in his minor-league contract kicking in today. Edmonds is certainly no longer an impact player, but as a minimum-salaried backup the 39-year-old seems capable of being a solid…

MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick reports that the Dodgers will soon name Vicente Padilla their Opening Day starter, which is a surprise to say the least given that the rotation also includes young studs Clayton Kershaw and Chad Billingsley. Padilla went 4-0 with a 3.20 ERA down the stretch for the Dodgers last season, but before that…

I wrote yesterday about MLB.com beat writers Jordan Bastian and Anthony DiComo challenging each other to a half-mile race and the “Dot Com Dash” gained lots of attention as colleagues and fans picked sides. Bastian emerged as the favorite because of his experience as a marathoner, but DiComo pulled off the upset yesterday afternoon on…

Showing that Jason Heyward isn’t the only player who can destroy property with his hits during spring training, Hideki Matsui somehow managed to smash the windshield of Angels owner Arte Moreno’s car with a foul ball yesterday. Bill Plunkett of the Orange Country Register has the details: Matsui hit a long foul ball down the…

Released by the Marlins earlier this week, Mike MacDougal has re-signed with the Nationals on a minor-league deal. MacDougal had a 3.60 ERA in 50 innings and converted 20-of-21 save chances in Washington last season, but his 31/31 K/BB ratio and incredibly inconsistent track record kept him from getting any big-league offers. Mike Capps is…

Albert Pujols recently did a photo shoot for the “Got Milk?” ad campaign, and Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post Dispatch passes along the final product that will soon be hanging on Drew Silva‘s bedroom wall:

As expected, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that the Yankees will open the season with Curtis Granderson in center field and Brett Gardner in left field. In his limited big-league experience as a center fielder Gardner rates exceptionally well statistically and Granderson’s glove showed signs of decline last year, so Sherman notes…

Yadier Molina left today’s game after straining his oblique muscle running the bases. Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post Dispatch reports that he legged out a double and then was on his way home on a David Freese single when Molina pulled up lame, exiting with a trainer by his side. Jason LaRue replaced…

Joe Maddon announced that rookie Wade Davis has won the final spot in the Rays’ rotation, with Andy Sonnanstine heading to the bullpen after making 72 starts over the past three seasons. Sonnanstine pitched well in 2008, winning 13 games with a 4.38 ERA and 124/37 K/BB ratio as a 25-year-old, but got knocked around…

Albert Pujols has rejoined the Cardinals’ lineup this afternoon, batting third and playing first base, just two days after receiving an anti-inflammatory shot in his sore lower back. Pujols has been limited by back problems for much of spring training, sitting out most of last week and being a last-minute scratch from several different lineups,…

Dustin Pedroia exited last night’s game after landing awkwardly on his right wrist, but Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe reports that X-rays came back negative this morning. Abraham notes that Pedroia should be cleared to take batting practice tomorrow and could return to game action as soon as Friday. He’s officially day-to-day with a…