Reliever Baez may join in Phillies

General manager Ruben Amaro Jr. of Phillies said last week that the club probably would sign a reliever in a couple weeks. It is unlikely to be right-handers John Smoltz, Chan Ho Park and Mike MacDougal. The Phillies have some concerns about Smoltz's durability, which might not be an issue except closer Brad Lidge and setup man J.C. Romero are recovering from elbow surgeries. The Phillies have expressed interest in MacDougal, but talks are not believed to be serious.

CSNPhilly.com reported that the Phillies have reached an agreement with a reliever. A good bet is right-hander Danys Baez, who has closing experience. That is something the Phils might need if Lidge and Romero are not ready to start the season. Baez went 4-6 with a 4.02 ERA in 59 appearances last season in the orioles jersey.

Dickey may sign Minors deal with Mets

According to the Associated Press, the Mets have agreed to terms with knuckleballer R.A. Dickey for a Minor League contract. Dickey appeared in 35 games for the Twins in his twins jersey in 2009, going 1-1 with a 4.62 ERA. He also made five starts for Minnesota's Triple-A affiliate in Rochester, going 2-1 with a 5.13 mark.

In his seven-year career, the right-hander has 22-28 with a 5.43 ERA. Originally a first-round Draft pick by the Rangers in 1996, Dickey has a 6.30 ERA in his career as a starter and a 4.16 mark as a reliever.

Pirates are now negotiating with free agents

The Pirate recently are taking a look at some veteran to fill their ninth-inning vacuum. Attributing a source, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that the Pirates have had several discussions with free-agent reliever Kevin Gregg. The newspaper disputed the sourced report that an offer was made to Dotel, but said there were discussions.

In 72 games for the Cubs in 2009, Gregg was 5-6 with a 4.72 ERA and 23 saves in his cubs jersey. Also Dotel was 3-3 with a 3.62 ERA in 62 games for the White Sox last season.

D-backs deal with Bob Howry

According to the Arizona Republic, the D-backs have reached a one-year contract agreement with right-hander Bob Howry. It is reported that Howry has agreed to a one-year deal with an option for 2011. The D-backs declined to comment on the report.

Howry was born in Phoenix and went to Deer Valley High School. Last season, Howry went 2-6 with a 3.39 ERA in 64 appearances for the Giants in giants jersey. He made more 70 appearances than the previous four seasons. The D-backs have pursued a reliever throughout the offseason. They went after LaTroy Hawkins, who signed with the Brewers and Matt Capps, who signed with the Nationals.

Wild's equipment truck was destroyed in fire

An equipment truck carrying some of the Minnesota Wild's gear caught fire in the Scotiabank Place parking lot. Fortunately there is nobody getting hurt in this fire. The members of the Wild's front office staff are currently in the process of determining the damage to the equipment, and the team released the following statement:"There was a fire in an equipment van in the parking lot at Scotiabank Place this afternoon. Some of the Minnesota Wild’s equipment has been damaged. The Wild is in the process of taking inventory to determine the damage to our equipment."

Assistant Equipment Manager Brent Proulx, who travels with the team tonight, is going to board a plane back to Minnesota. Assistant Equipment Manager Matt Benz and Chris Pietrzak-Wegner will gather equipment and load it onto a plane which is bound for Ottawa tomorrow morning.

Padres give invitation to Denorfia

The Padres announced that they signed outfielder Chris Denorfia to a Minor League contract with an invitation to Spring Training. Denorfia has a .279 batting average in 208 Major League at-bats with Cincinnati and Oakland. Last season, Denorfia spent most of the season with the Oakland's Triple-A Sacramento affiliate, hitting .271 with nine home runs and 15 stolen bases. Denorfia got 120 at-bats with the Reds during the 2006 season in the reds jersey.

The Padres like Denorfia's versatility and that he can play all three outfield positions. There will be plenty of competition for jobs in the outfield in Spring Training. If there is nothing else, the addition of Denorfia will give Padres outfield depth in Triple-A Portland.

Nationals term with Olsen to a one-year deal

The Nationals officially announced that the club signed left-hander Scott Olsen to a one-year contract worth $1 million.
Olsen missed most of 2009 season because of a small tear in his left labrum. He was traded from the Marlins to the Nats in a four-player trade last year. "I never felt like I got into a groove like I have in previous years," Olsen said. "But at this point, I'm happy that the shoulder problems are behind me. I'm looking forward to having a banner year. I have something to prove to myself and other people in baseball at this point."

Olsen started feeling pain in his left shoulder on July 10 in a start against the Astros. In that game, Olsen lasted six innings and then gave up four runs. He had missed time earlier in the season because of soreness in the same shoulder.
Now Olsen is expected to be ready for Spring Training. Let's put on the nationals jerseys and support him.

Dodgers talk to Reds about Harang trading

Recently the Dodgers talked to the Reds about trading for pitcher Aaron Harang, who is being considered to fill their vacant fourth starter spot. Harang fits the profile which general manager Ned Colletti is looking for. The Dodgers have financial limitations and Harang is guaranteed at least $15 million over the next year if he is traded. Harang landed a $36.5 million deal in 2006-07 but has regressed since. His 2009 season was cut short by a surgery.

However Harang isn't the only option. Two pitchers the Dodgers acquired during the 2009 season, Vicente Padilla and Jon Garland would also qualify, but both of them are looking for multiyear deals, which the club is going to avoid. Anyway it is a good thing while Harang put on a dodgers jersey.

Flames and Avalanche highlights Sunday schedule

First place in the Northwest Division will be on the line in the NHL as part of its two-game schedule. At 8 p.m. ET, the Calgary Flames and Colorado Avalanche, who are tied for first in the Northwest, will battle with each other at the Pepsi Center. The Flames have picked up points in eight of their last 10 games, while Colorado is coming off a 2-1 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Friday.

The Lightning are also in action on Sunday, they willl visit the Chicago Blackhawks at the United Center at 7 p.m. ET. Chicago is at the top of the Central Division with 41 points, while the Lightning are two points behind the Montreal Canadiens for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Now put on your own nhl jerseys and support your favorite teams!

Simmonds is out due to lower body injury

Unfortunately already without three forwards, the Kings will be without second-year forward Wayne Simmonds for an unknown length of time due to a lower body injury. He is out for at least tonight's Pacific Division play with the Dallas Stars.
Brad Richardson will replace Simmonds, who has never missed a game in 115-game career in his los angeles kings jersey.

"You know what, we really don’t know what happened," head coach Terry Murray said. "It did not happen in the game, no specific time or situation, he's just got a lower body injury. He is going to be out for a while. He is going to see our doctors tonight at the game and we will take it from there."

GM Maloney will appear on NHL Live!

Phoenix Coyotes General Manager Don Maloney will be among the guests on NHL Live!, scheduled from noon to 2 p.m. on NHL Network and NHL.com. The Coyotes are the biggest surprise far of the 2009-10 season, as they sit in sixth place in the Western Conference at 19-11-2.

Also scheduled to appear to speak with co-hosts Don La Greca and E.J. Hradek are NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly, TSN analyst Bob McKenzie and Los Angeles Kings announcer Nick Nickson.

Bennett is honored as top Midwest scout

During the Winter Meetings, Bennett was presented with the Midwest Scout of the Year honors as part of the Scout of the Year Awards. Bennett is in his 58th year in the Reds organization, the only team he has ever been with since 1952. "That's a long time. I've signed a lot of good players," said Bennett, who received his award on Wednesday. "It's about the only award I haven't won yet. You're always excited to get them. It came from all the people in the country that you work with. It's all about what you've done and the players you've signed." Reds general manager Walt Jocketty introduced and presented the award to Bennett.

The winner of the East Coast Scout of the Year was Alex Cosmidis of the White Sox and the West Coast recipient was the Cubs' Gary Hughes. Both of the them have previously worked for the Reds.

Veteran infielder comes back to Arizona

The D-backs agreed to terms with arbitration-eligible Augie Ojeda on a one-year contract. The 34-year-old batted .246 with three home runs and 16 RBIs in 103 games with Arizona in his diamondbacks jersey last season. He also established career highs in at-bats, runs scored, hits, doubles, triples and walks. The versatile infielder also appeared in 35 games at second base, 34 games at shortstop and 28 games at third. He hasn't committed an error in his last 115 games, which is the longest active streak among second baseman.

The eight-year veteran has also played with the Cubs and Twins and has a career .238 batting average with seven home runs and 129 runs scored in 443 games.

Brewers agree to deal with Counsell

Brewers general manager Doug Melvin told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel last weekend that he had reached a tentative agreement with infielder Craig Counsell on a 2010 return. Melvin told the media that the contract will be finalized on Monday.

Counsell appeared in 130 games last season in his brewers jersey and batted .285. The deal will probably be a one-year compact, but it's still unclear whether the Brewers offered an option for a second season, he would be an important role behind second baseman Rickie Weeks, shortstop Alcides Escobar and third baseman Casey McGehee or Mat Gamel.

Upshall and Downie will appear on NHL Live!

Phoenix Coyotes forward Scottie Upshall will be among the guests on NHL Live!, scheduled from noon to 2 p.m. on NHL Network and NHL.com. Upshall has 7 goals, 5 assists and 30 penalty minutes in 27 games in coyotes jersey this season. He has 118 points in 257 NHL games.

Also speaking with hosts Rob Simpson and Stan Fischler are Tampa Bay Lightning forward Steve Downie, as well as Kevin Allen of USA Today and Washington Capitals/Versus announcer Joe Beninati. NHL Live! is broadcast from the NHL Store Powered By Reebok in Manhattan.

Ovechkin becomes the model of January Men's Journal

Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin models some of the season's best accessories and answers some questions about hockey in the December/January issue of Men's Journal.

Men's Journal is a general interest, active lifestyle monthly magazine that focuses on adventure, travel, equipment, sports, fitness, health, style and ideas. The issue, Men's Journal, featuring the six-page "Here's The Key to Your Suite, Mr. Ovechkin" spread, is currently on sold locally. It seems that he looks much more charming in fashion suits than in his capitals jersey.

Witt feels good after car accident

According to a report, New York Islanders defenseman Brendan Witt was struck by a car in Philadelphia on Tuesday morning and was not injured. At that time Witt was crossing Arch Street when a car made an illegal turn and struck the defenseman. According to the report, Witt told passersby he was all right and continued on his way.

"I'm OK," Witt said, according to Newsday. "I've got to go play some hockey. I'm a hockey player. I'm OK. No big deal."
"I just got lucky," Witt said. "Fortunately nothing bad happened. I'm just a little sore." He didn't file an accident report and was now at the team's morning skate at the Wachovia Center. It seems that he can continue playing on the ice in his islanders jersey.

Rays has offered Shouse and Zaun arbitration

The Rays have offered arbitration to two of their three Type B free agents, left-hander Brian Shouse and catcher Gregg Zaun were both offered salary arbitration, but the team did not offer arbitration to right-hander Russ Springer. Springer declared himself a free agent shortly after MLB's free-agency period began following the World Series. After deliberating until late Tuesday night, the Rays decided not to offer arbitration to the veteran right-hander.

By offering arbitration to Shouse and Zaun, the Rays have qualified themselves to receive draft-pick compensation if either of them signs with another team. However, they also run the risk of the player accepting arbitration by Monday's deadline, which would ensure the player returning in 2010 on a one-year contract.

The Rays also have three non-ranked free agents who are covered by Tuesday's deadline, right-handers Chad Bradford, Jason Isringhausen and Troy Percival. However, since there is no compensation for them signing with another team, there is no reason to offer arbitration to other players.

Four Minor Leaguers receive suspension

Major League Baseball officially announced last week that a players and two Minor Leaguers from the Dominican Summer League have received 50-game suspensions for violating the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program.

Pitcher Daniel Vazquez, who pitched for Double-A Mobile in the D-backs organization last season, will start the 2010 season under suspension after testing positive for metabolites of a performance-enhancing substance. Free-agent catcher Matt Tupman, who recently played for Mobile as well, has been suspended a second time for a drug of abuse and will serve his suspension upon signing with a Major League organization. In addition, Jefferson Segundo of the Cardinals will be suspended for testing positive for metabolites of Stanozolol, and Joel Tamares of the Marlins organization will be suspended for testing positive as well. It seems that they have to take off their mlb jerseys for a period.

Cooke receives two-game suspension

It is announced that Pittsburgh Penguins forward Matt Cooke has been suspended for two games without pay, as the result of a deliberate check to the New York Rangers forward Artem Anisimov. Cooke delivered the hit during the third period at Mellon Arena. He was then assessed a minor penalty for interference. Cooke later fought with the Rangers' Ryan Callahan, and each player receiving a 10-minute misconduct in addition to the five-minute majors.

Cooke will miss the following game on Thursday against the Colorado Avalanche before he is eligible to return for a game against Chicago Blackhawks. Luckily fans will see him playing in his pittsburgh penguisn jersey again after two games.

Sharks acquired Leach from Canadiens

San Jose Sharks Executive Vice President and General Manager Doug Wilson announced that the team has added defenseman Jay Leach from the Montreal Canadiens. "Jay adds depth to our organization's defensive core and we are pleased that we were able to acquire him," Wilson said.

Leach has played in seven games with Montreal this season, posting five penalty minutes and an even rating. Leach also played 12 games with the Lowell Devils in the American Hockey League, posting three points and 10 penalty minutes. Leach also played in 24 games with New Jersey in 2008-09. In 35 career NHL games with Montreal, New Jersey, Tampa Bay and Boston, Leach has one assist and 33 penalty minutes. Now fans are looking forward to seeing him wearing a san jose sharks jersey.