Archives for February 2010

Omar Vizquel's wish list is impressive: he's already held an anaconda by the tail and donned a matador's outfit in a first step toward bullfighting. Flying in an F-16 and sky diving are also on his radar.

First, though, there's more baseball ahead for the 42-year-old infielder — this time with the Chicago White Sox, who are managed by his fellow Venezuelan Ozzie Guillen.

Vizquel can't wear his familiar No. 13 because Guillen has it and won't give it up. So he went to yet another countryman who played shortstop in Chicago, Hall of Famer Luis Aparicio, and got his blessing and his permission to unretire No. 11 and wear it this season.

"I was intimidated a little bit to ask him," Vizquel said Thursday as he reported to spring training.

Aparicio was named American League Rookie of the Year as a member of the White Sox in 1956 and the 10-time All-Star played 10 seasons with Chicago. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1984, the same year the team retired his uniform number. "It's not easy just to ask a legend like him to wear that number," Vizquel said. "But I think the good relationship I have with him made me pop the question. ... He hesitated a little bit, he thought about it and he gave me a little smile and said, `Well, if there is somebody that I want to wear my number, I think that person can be you.' It was like a shock and it made me feel good.

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Major League Baseball is planning to begin blood testing of minor league players for the banned substance human growth hormone (HGH) later this year, anti-doping sources told Reuters on Wednesday. Major League Baseball (MLB) said it was consulting experts on the issue "concerning immediate steps for our minor league drug program" but a source familiar with the plans said he understood the tests would definitely be implemented.

"The commissioner remains committed to the position that we must act aggressively to deal with the issue of HGH," MLB said in a statement adding that it was also considering "the next steps for our major league drug program."The National Football League (NFL) also has proposed blood testing its players for HGH, The Washington Post reported on Wednesday.

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Tom Ricketts  once sat in the bleachers at Wrigley Field, cheering for the Chicago Cubs. On Tuesday, with the players gathered around him in the spring training weight room, he addressed the team that his family now owns. His message was simple: He and his family will be around and do everything possible to help the Cubs win.

"If there is anything we can do better, let us know," Ricketts said he told the players. For his part, Ricketts is already taking steps. There are new upgrades at Wrigley Field, including an improved clubhouse and weight rooms, a new players' lounge, a new club in the outfield and better restrooms for fans. The Ricketts also raised ticket prices on some seats at the storied stadium.

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To Johnny Damon, the Detroit Tigers were the right team. "This is where I wanted to be," he said Monday after completing his $8 million, one-year contract. "The Tigers were my first choice. I love it here and think I am a good fit."Let go by the World Series champion New York Yankees, Damon also drew interest from the Atlanta Braves and Chicago White Sox. When it came time to choose, he darted to Detroit.

"The Tigers are a scary team and the fact that this team has gotten even younger makes it a lot more fun," he said. The 36-year-old outfielder brings another left-handed bat to the Tigers' lineup besides switch-hitter Carlos Guillen. Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski has said Damon wasn't in the team's plans as late as January. But Damon came into the picture after the Tigers dealt leadoff hitter Curtis Granderson to the Yankees, then saw Placido Polanco leave as a free agent.

"We needed to make some adjustments," Dombrowski said. "We aren't doing it only for this year, but we also needed to move forward. The moves we made earlier in the year allowed us to make some adjustments, not only for now but also for the future. We also brought in some young talent.

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Oakland Athletics pitcher Justin Duchscherer is off to a slow start at spring training. The two-time All-Star, who missed all of last season after having surgery on his right elbow and being treated for clinical depression, didn't throw Sunday during the first workout for Oakland pitchers and catchers.

Duchscherer is feeling pain in his lower back and is likely to undergo some procedure Monday to treat the problem. While Duchscherer missed out, oft-injured Ben Sheets was at work.

The four-time All-Star was pounding the strike zone, and the sound of his fastball hitting the catcher's mitt echoed during the Athletics' practice.

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The estranged wife of Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt wants nearly $1 million per month in temporary support, arguing that he is trying to mislead the court about his financial resources. The amount was revealed in a 1,423-page court filing unsealed Thursday in which Jamie McCourt's lawyers allege Frank McCourt and his advisers manipulated financial statements in order to estimate his net worth at $163 million. This lower figure was revealed nine months after estimating his net worth at $835 million in another statement.

"What has occurred here is some extensive planning for divorce court in terms of attempting to diminish on paper the value of the Dodgers," said Jamie McCourt's attorney, Dennis Wasser. "The team is a very profitable organization.

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Tim Lincecum might have thought he was on a mound last Friday, not outside a St. Petersburg arbitration hearing room. "My adrenaline kicked in a little bit, just because of what I was going through. Nerves. Butterflies. All the excitement. Tiredness," Lincecum said Thursday of the emotions he felt in the hours before his arbitration hearing was to begin.

As it almost always does when Lincecum is wired up, things worked out just fine. Lincecum avoided an arbitration hearing at literally the last hour, when he and the Giants agreed to a two-year, $23 million contract. He will make $8 million this season and $13 million in 2011, with a $2 million bonus to be split between the two seasons.

"I'm completely happy with what happened," said Lincecum, the two-time defending NL Cy Young Award winner. "I don't know the significance that much. The bump in pay ... I don't know how to put it into words."Lincecum's contract was the richest signed by a first-year arbitration-eligible player, exceeding the $6.25 million contract Boston closer Jonathan Papelbon signed last January to avoid arbitration.

Lincecum, 25, also has a chance to earn $2.05 million in bonuses over the next two years, including $500,000 for winning a Cy Young Award and $100,000 for making an All-Star team.

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Tim Lincecum  and the San Francisco Giants have finalized their $23 million, two-year contract that avoided salary arbitration. The two-time NL Cy Young Award winner reached a preliminary agreement last Friday, and the sides have completed the deal, team spokesman Jim Moorehead said Wednesday.

Lincecum gets a $2 million signing bonus, payable half on March 15 with the rest due on March 15, 2011. He receives salaries of $8 million this year, $13 million in 2011 and the chance to earn performance and award bonuses. He made $650,000 last year. In addition to his salary, Lincecum would earn $200,000 for pitching 225 innings, a figure he reached in each of his two full seasons. He would get $500,000 for each Cy Young Award, $250,000 for finishing second, $100,000 for third, $75,000 for fourth and $50,000 for fifth. He also would get $100,000 each time he's an All-Star, $100,000 for NL MVP, $75,000 for World Series MVP and $50,000 for league championship series MVP.

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 Washington Nationals reliever Brian Bruney  has asked an arbitration panel for a raise from $1.25 million to $1.85 million. The team argued during Tuesday's hearing that he should be paid $1.5 million. A decision by arbitrators Steven Wolf, Sylvia Skratek and Dan Brent is expected Wednesday, when Bruney turns 28.

Washington acquired the right-hander from the New York Yankees on Dec. 7 for a player to be named, outfielder Jamie Hoffmann, whom the Nationals selected with the first pick of the winter meeting draft.

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Luke Hochevar had some memorable games and forgettable starts in 2009 for the Kansas City Royals. He needed only 80 pitches in nine innings on June 12 to beat the Cincinnati Reds 4-1. He struck out 13 Texas Rangers and walked none in a July 25 victory. He logged his first career shutout on Sept. 18 against the Chicago White Sox, yielding three singles and only one that left the infield.

However, the shutout at Chicago was his only victory in his final 13 starts. He went 1-10 with an 8.21 earned run average the second half. Hochevar, who was an early arrival for the Royals' volunteer spring training mini-camp, is trying not to dwell on how last season finished.

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