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We're halfway to the weekend and some real, live baseball. Hang in there.
Once again, no score recaps this morning as we're briefly holding off until Opening Day on Sunday.
Let's talk some baseball news:
The Big Three
1. If there was ever a time to try moving that one guy who is weighing your team down but you'd never thought anyone would want, this is probably it. The Yankees have taken to signing essentially anything that moves lately, so if you dress your guy up like a carrot and dangle him in front of Brian Cashman, who knows what'll happen. Lyle Overbay became the latest benefactor of New York's buying frenzy yesterday, hooking on with the club on a minor-league deal just hours after being released by the Boston Red Sox. It seems likely that the Yanks signed Overbay with the intention of having him platoon at first base with Juan Rivera, which is equal parts hilarious and sad.
2. Speaking of moves you'd never thought would happen, the Milwaukee Brewers went in for seconds on Yuniesky Betancourt yesterday, signing the veteran infielder to a one-year deal. I don't have any sort of personal thing against Yuni, I just don't really understand how he provides something for you beyond what any other no-hit, no-field guy kicking around in the minors could do for less money. There's gotta be something there that we're missing if two teams like him enough to sign him twice. Or perhaps it's the teams that are missing something?
3. Watch out, folks. Scott Boras is in a groove and now he's calling his shots. The super agent dealt Kyle Lohse on Monday and now he's got his sights set on lucrative deals for Jose Valverde and Francisco Rodriguez. Boras told reporters that he expects the pair of relievers to sign with new clubs "soon," which really narrows it down. Boras also boasted that Papa Grande shed 18 pounds over the winter and is hitting 93-95 miles per hour on the radar gun, which is nice and all but really doesn't do much to change his 6.3 K/9 rate from last season. At the moment, the rumor mills for both players are completely silent, which probably means that Boras will end up getting them seven-figure, multi-year deals by the end of the week.
In Other News...
1. Nationals right-hander Chris Young opted out of his minor-league deal with the club yesterday. The tall right-hander shouldn't have any trouble latching on as a back-end-of-the-rotation safety net by the time Sunday arrives. He's an extreme fly ball guy, so my money's on the Angels or the Padres.
2. The Rockies are likely to trade catcher Ramon Hernandez by the end of the week, which will probably be easier said than done. The veteran backstop is owed $3.2 million this year, is getting old, and is coming off the worst season of his career, so he should be a perfect candidate for Yankees.
3. The Phillies have released pitch-to-contact legend Aaron Cook from his minor-league deal. The right-hander is a solid ground ball guy, so look for the Rockies to try bringing him back to Coors Field, flawed as that thinking may be.
