MLB News Blog

The Oakland Athletics reached a deal with Cisco Systems Inc. to build a new ballpark in Fremont, according to city officials who met with the team’s owner Wednesday. The agreement would create a 32,000- to 35,000-seat ballpark, dubbed Cisco Field, on a 143-acre parcel held by the company, officials told the San Jose Mercury News.
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Gary Sheffield said he’s being blocked by “middle men” from speaking with Yankees owner George Steinbrenner about his desire to stay in New York and will comply with the team’s request to form a list of clubs he’d prefer to be traded to. New York exercised Sheffield’s $13 million option last weekend, preventing him from […]

SAN DIEGO (Ticker) - After serving as one of baseball’s best pitching coaches for the better part of a decade, Bud Black will get his chance to manage.
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The Pittsburgh Pirates are interested in signing former Cuban Olympic right-hander Yuslan Herrera to a three-year contract, but any deal looks to be at least several weeks away. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound Herrera defected to the Dominican Republic a year after helping Cuba win the gold medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens.
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Art Howe has been hired as bench coach for the Texas Rangers and first-time manager Ron Washington. Howe’s hiring was confirmed by two baseball officials with knowledge of the decision. The Rangers were unable to announce the move Wednesday because the necessary paperwork had not been finalized with the commissioner’s office.
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The waiting began Wednesday for teams that bid for Japanese pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka. His Japanese club, the Pacific League’s Seibu Lions, was expected to announce as early as Thursday whether it will accept the high bid for the 26-year-old right-hander. The New York Yankees, New York Mets, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs and Texas Rangers […]

Infielder-outfielder Matt Kata and the Texas Rangers agreed Wednesday to a minor league contract. Kata spent last season with Louisville, the Triple-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. He hit .263 with nine homers and 34 RBIs, making 70 starts in the outfield and 32 starts in the infield. He is playing this offseason in the […]

Reserve infielder Ramon Martinez re-signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday, passing up a chance to test the free-agent market. Martinez, who had filed for free agency, agreed to an $850,000, one-year contract that includes a club option for 2008. “Ramon was a very valuable and versatile player for us this season,” general manager […]

Angels pitching coach Bud Black was hired Wednesday to replace Bruce Bochy as the manager of the San Diego Padres, a baseball official said. Black will be introduced at the team’s awards banquet Thursday night, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because an official announcement hadn’t been made.
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