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During an appearance on Sirius XM’s MLB Home Plate on Sunday morning, Red Sox assistant general manager Ben Cherington addressed the right thumb condition that nixed a possible trade of Mike Lowell to the Rangers: “Even at the end of the playoffs, in our exit physical, he barely made mention of it,” Cherington said in…

In his weekly column for the Boston Globe, Nick Cafardo reports that Mark DeRosa’s asking price — once in the $10 million range — has come down recently. He follows that up with a pretty innocent statement that the Mets could “pull the trigger and use him at first base.” This seems like pure speculation…

He’s been one of the most bandied-about names this offseason, but Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com thinks it would behoove the Padres to wait until the 2010 non-waiver trade deadline to trade Adrian Gonzalez: By the middle of this season, it should be different. In July, other GMs can’t talk about free-agent options. In July,…

Cuban left-hander Aroldis Chapman has another offer on the table, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. The Marlins offered Chapman a five-year deal in the vicinity of $13 million. Chapman already has one offer on the table from the Red Sox, believed to be for around $15.5 million. It probably won’t be enough…

If you’re snowed in like me, or just have a few minutes to kill before football dominates the day, I recommend reading Andy Martino’s excellent piece from the Philadelphia Inquirer recounting Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro’s pursuit of ace Roy Halladay. Of course, the Phillies tried for Roy Halladay in July, but the talks were…

“As long as he plays the right way, comes to spring training ready to work and ready to be part of the team that we have–good guys put their nose to the ground and bust their butts–we’ll take anybody.”“It’s good to have a power left-handed bat (in) Safeco (Field). His ability never has been the…

Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reports that free agent right-hander Chien-Ming Wang is drawing interest from 15 teams, according to his agent Alan Nero. Wang, who turns 30 in March, was non-tendered by the Yankees last Saturday after posting a 9.64 ERA in ’09 and undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery in June. Nero wouldn’t reveal…

According to Buster Olney of ESPN.com, the Athletics are close to signing free agent outfielder Coco Crisp to a one-year contract worth between $4.5 million-5 million. The Padres also expressed interest in the 30-year-old outfielder, but Crisp elected to join Oakland’s crowded outfield, instead. I’m guessing it’s for the contract security, which also reportedly includes…

Because Steve Phillips’ mock press conferences weren’t cringe-inducing enough, ESPN will feature a series of “Santa Kruk” segments during SportsCenter next week, in which he will present gifts to some major league teams (watch them all here, if you dare). Among them, a “goat catcher” for the Cubs, a rocket scientist for the Astros and…

Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com writes that the Nationals are making a “strong push” for free agent right-hander Jon Garland. According to the report, Garland wants a three-year deal while the Nationals would prefer two years. Garland, 30, was 11-13 with a 4.01 ERA and 1.40 WHIP in 33 starts this past season, earning $6.25 million.…

With the Reds hurting for payroll relief, Scott Rolen has agreed to restructure his contract with an extension that will carry him through the 2012 season, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports. Rolen, who turns 35 in April, was set to earn $11 million next season, but under the terms of the new agreement, he will…

Jayson Stark of ESPN.com reports that Mike Lowell will fly to Texas on Saturday to meet with the Rangers’ front office and take a physical. The Rangers have a preliminary agreement to trade catcher Max Ramirez to the Red Sox in exchange for Lowell and cash considerations, however the trade has been on hold for…

Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes that Matt Holliday should learn a lesson from Johnny Damon’s negotiations with the Yankees: As this drags on, we can only wonder if or when the Cardinals will withdraw from the Holliday auction and redirect their money to other players. Will Holliday lose out in St. Louis…

Here’s a surprising tidbit. Jayson Stark of ESPN.com writes that Mike Cameron, Andruw Jones and Jason Michaels are the only outfielders to sign major league contracts this winter. He doesn’t count Ken Griffey Jr. since he re-signed with the Mariners before hitting the market, nor does he include Hideki Matsui, who didn’t play a single…

He thinks the Mets should let other GMs know that Johan Santana is available: Of course, the Wilpon family will do no such thing. They invested $137.5 million in the great lefthander and aren’t about to admit failure. But the current Mets core is beginning Year 5 of a golden era that wasn’t and considering…

Adam LaRoche batted .325/.401/.557 with 12 home runs, 40 RBI and a .957 OPS in 212 at-bats after being scooped up from the Red Sox on July 31, playing a huge part in the Braves’ late playoff run. Sure, we’re all accustomed to LaRoche’s second-half surges — .909 OPS lifetime, as opposed to .773 before…

Earlier today, Craig had some thoughts on how Pirates general manager Neal Huntington treated right-hander Matt Capps, who was non-tendered on Saturday. I’m beginning to think that Huntington announced that he would tender contracts to all of his arbitration-eligible players only to attempt to drum up some late trade interest in the 26-year-old reliever. It…

The Blue Jays have signed catcher John Buck to a one-year, $2 million contract, reports Jayson Stark of ESPN.com. Buck was non-tendered by the Royals on Saturday. The 29-year-old backstop batted .247/.299/.484 with eight home runs and 36 RBI in 186 at-bats in ’09, throwing out 16% of would-be basestealers. He has a .235/.299/.484 career…

When Scott Boras talks, people listen. Take the winter meetings, for instance. He’s bombastic. He’s outrageous. And sometimes he’s very close to pushing his luck. The Yankees recently acquired the younger and more-athletic Curtis Granderson in a blockbuster three-team trade, providing general manager Brian Cashman with some flexibility in negotiations for veteran free agent outfielder…

Akinori Iwamura, who was traded from the Rays to the Pirates last month, took out a full-page ad in Sunday’s edition of the St. Petersburg Times, thanking the fans of Tampa Bay: “I hope you’ll remember me with good thoughts for my efforts on the field and even for my “Rayhawk” haircut during our run to…

Cardinals pitching coach Dave Duncan said Chien-Ming Wang, who was non-tendered by the Yankees on Saturday, intrigues him as a free agent, reports Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Wang likely won’t be able to contribute until next May as he recovers from shoulder surgery, and he hasn’t pitched a full season since 2007,…

According to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the Brewers have a tentative agreement in place to re-sign free agent infielder Craig Counsell. The 39-year-old Counsell was believed to be seeking a two-year contract this winter, but the length and terms of the new contract are not yet known. Counsell came out of nowhere…

This week’s proposed trade of Mike Lowell and cash to the Rangers for catcher Max Ramirez currently stands in transaction limbo. Why? Blame Lowell’s right thumb. The Rangers are reportedly satisfied with the status of Lowell’s right hip, but they are reviewing an injury to Lowell’s thumb that hampered him over the final weeks of…

Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe has been following the Adrian Gonzalez situation pretty closely this winter, but recent talks between the Red Sox and Padres are going nowhere. For now, that is. At conflict is the players San Diego will receive in return. New general manager Jed Hoyer has asked for Clay Buchholz and…

Updating a previous item, a major league source told WEEI.com that a mystery team has exceeded four years for free agent outfielder Jason Bay. The only two known offers at this point: Four-years, $60 million – Red Sox Four-years, $63 million – Mets After agent Joe Urbon’s comments earlier today and the skepticism following the…