The Indians drafted Tim Lincecum in the 42nd round of the 2005 MLB Draft.

Cleveland made him a $700,000 offer, much to the chagrin of Frank Coonelly, who was in charge of the draft's unofficial slotting system for MLB. Coonelly is now president of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The Indians had already gone over slot specifications with a couple of other players and Coonelly was unhappy with the offer.

Lincecum said no after asking for $1M and went to the Cape Cod League that summer and pitched well. He returned to college for the 2006 season and was the 10th player taken in the draft. The Giants paid him $2.025 million.

The Indians weren't the only team that drafted Lincecum and failed to sign him. The Cubs took him with the 48th pick in 2003. [READ]

The Yankees are monitoring talks between the Twins and catcher Joe Mauer on a long-term contract.

Most teams around baseball are doing so, but the New York Daily News points out that the Yankees have the financial resources to make a play for Mauer should Minnesota stumble while looking to re-sign him.

Many believe that Yankees catching prospect Jesus Montero will make it to the big leagues by next season.

"But in my opinion," said one scout, "the next catcher for the Yankees will be Joe Mauer. Imagine if the Twins don't sign him and he goes out there on the market next winter with both the Yankees and Red Sox in need of a catcher? That will be the wildest bidding war in baseball history, and don't think his agent doesn't know it. And if they (Twins) decide to trade him, the Yankees have the better pieces to get him." [READ]

Mets' prospect Fernando Martinez is now batting .538 in spring training, with 3 home runs. His 14 hits and 29 total bases are among the most in exhibition baseball this March, and he is one of a number of young Mets who have excelled in spring training and given the team, and its fans, some genuine cause for encouragement.

“Last year, I tried to do too much,” Martinez said, referring to his 29 games with the Mets in 2009, when he hit .176 with a home run before going on the disabled list.

Yet because Martinez is still just 21 years old, and needs to play every day, Manager Jerry Manuel seems reluctant to keep him on the team come April. He is more likely to start the season at Class AAA Buffalo, where he is guaranteed a lot of at-bats and plenty of chances to improve his skills as an outfielder, particularly in center.

“The center-field part is very important right now,” Manuel said, referring to the need for the Mets to have a good anchor in Citi Field’s cavernous outfield. [READ]

Buster Posey said Wednesday he is "about a seven" in terms of comfort playing first base, where he is seeing a lot of action this spring.

"I'm fairly comfortable," he said. "There are also some unknowns. It's like (bench coach Ron) Wotus was telling me, there are situations that arise you can't prepare for. Then it's that old cliche: You just try to be a baseball player." [READ]

The Rays signed closer Rafael Soriano over the offseason to give the team a legitimate 9th inning guy, something they have lacked.

"Everyone is excited to see him out there," Carlos Peña said. "He is the last piece that we needed here."

"He appears that he's able to handle those situations calmly," said Joe Maddon. "A lot of self-confidence — he's just dripping with self-confidence, and that's good." [READ]

Toyota has agreed to sponsor an illuminated sign rising high above the Wrigley Field bleachers. The proposed sign is an advertising intrusion that may run afoul of the ballpark’s landmark designation.

Sports marketing expert Marc Ganis estimated that the deal could bring the Ricketts family up to $2.5 million-a-year because Wrigley has no advertising “clutter” and the Cubs are the only team in baseball with its own “national broadcasting network.”

Wally Hayward, Cubs executive vice-president for sales and marketing, refused to reveal specifics of the multi-year deal.

He would only say, “We are at a big competitive disadvantage if we cannot generate incremental sponsorship revenue in a tasteful manner that helps preserve Wrigley Field. We’re not looking to add a whole wall of signage out there like other stadiums across the country.”

Rising from a base at the back of the bleachers, the new sign would feature the automaker’s familiar logo and the word, “Toyota” in block letters underneath. [READ]

Kevin Gregg expects to be Toronto's closer this season.

“I’d like to believe so,” he said. “It’s Cito's choice. But they know what I’ve done in the past. I’ve come into camp and shown how I can throw."

The Jays hope Scott Downs and Jason Frasor can be Gregg's setup men.

“The good thing about this team is that with Downs, Frasor and myself, we’ve got three viable arms for the spot and we’ll see hat happens at the end of spring training.” [READ]

Former Mets and Phillies star Lenny Dykstra has sued JP Morgan Chase & Co. Inc. for $100 million.

Dykstra claims he didn't get the loan he needed when he bought hockey great Wayne Gretzky's California home.

He filed for bankruptcy protection in July, saying he owed more than $31 million and had about $50,000 in assets.
[READ]

Reds pitcher Aroldis Chapman struck out five and allowed a one-run home run to Milwaukee's Richie Weeks on Wednesday.

Chapman has allowed just one run in seven innings this spring and is making a strong case for Cincinnati's starting rotation. [READ]

A majority of Ron Washington's players came to his defense on Wednesday as the Rangers reacted to news that the manager tested positive for cocaine last season.

Josh Hamilton, who has dealt with drug and alcohol addiction problems, offered love and support.

"I told him I loved him," Hamilton said. "Everybody makes mistakes. I respect him as a man, as a coach and as a man of high integrity. When he was speaking to us in here, you could tell he was broken and really felt remorse about it."

Rangers third baseman Michael Young said Washington's apology was "well received."

"Going forward, I don't see it being a big issue at all," Young said. "He made a mistake. He admitted it. He talked to the team about it. Guys were able to say their piece. He gave an open-door policy for guys to answer whatever question they wanted. You can't ask for much more than that. It won't be a distraction for the guys. We'll get ready for the season." [READ]

Pitcher Cliff Lee of the Seattle Mariners has received a five-game suspension and an undisclosed fine for intentionally throwing a pitch in the head area of Arizona Diamondbacks catcher Chris Snyder during the third inning of Seattle’s Spring Training game on Monday, March 15th at Tucson Electric Park in Tucson, Arizona.

Bob Watson, Vice President of On-Field Operations for Major League Baseball, made the announcement.

Unless appealed, Lee is scheduled to begin serving his suspension on Opening Day, Monday, April 5th. [READ]

Diamondbacks pitcher Brandon Webb feels as though his arm is starting to come back to life.

"It felt like I was throwing hard as hell," he said, recalling a throwing session he had with teammate Dan Haren
on Sunday. "It felt like I was throwing 95."

The doctor who performed Webb's shoulder surgery in August was there watching him throw and came away so impressed he didn't even feel the need to examine him.

"I was letting it go almost all the way," Webb said. "I felt like I had more left in the tank even. It was good, really good." [READ]

Yankees manager Joe Girardi says that Joba Chamberlain needs to "pick it up" if he's going to be the team's fifth starter this season.

"Got to pick it up, we have told him you got to pitch now," Girardi said Tuesday night. "We gave you those couple of starts to get under your belt. Now you have to show us, you got to pitch."

Alfredo Aceves is believed to lead the race for the No. 5 spot. [READ]

Red Sox shortstop Jed Lowrie has been diagnosed with mononucleosis.

"He can play as tolerated," manager Terry Francona said. "He was on the bike yesterday. I don't think he'll feel like he has a ton of energy for the next week or two, but he can do physical things as tolerated.

"So we'll monitor him. We'll keep an eye on him, and monitor him. That's about the best we can do."

Lowrie first complained of fatigue a week ago. [READ]

Rockies reliever Huston Street felt discomfort in his right shoulder and will undergo an MRI exam.

Street has been hampered by inflammation in his pitching shoulder and has yet to throw in an exhibition game.

He signed a $22.5 million, three-year deal in January. [READ]

Texas Rangers manager Ron Washington will tell his players that he used cocaine last summer and has completed a baseball-mandated counseling program.

Sources have described the incident a one-time weak moment by Washington in August.

He told the Rangers' front office, including team president Nolan Ryan and general manager Jon Daniels, and turned himself in to the commissioner's office within days of the test. [READ]

The Nationals have released Elijah Dukes.

Manager Jim Riggleman said it was a strictly baseball decision. "We like some of our other options in right field, really," Riggleman said. "Elijah was great."

There will be much more later on this story, a stunning development that seemed to take the clubhouse completely by surprise. [READ]

The Nationals still haven't decided whether or not top prospect Stephen Strasburg will begin the season in the minors.

"In all probability, Stephen would benefit from going to the Minor Leagues," general manager Mike Rizzo. "The official decision has not been made."

Strasburg is scheduled to pitch Friday night against the Cardinals at Space Coast Stadium.

"My stringent plan is, we are going to develop the player, to get the most out of him -- not only for 2010, but for the long-term," Rizzo said. "We are going to be cautious and careful with him, because he has a great future ahead of him. We are going to do what's best for Stephen and the Washington Nationals in 2010 and beyond.

"To rush a person to the big leagues and to have them take two or three steps backwards, I think, is the wrong plan. ... I have a plan in my mind for Stephen Strasburg, Drew Storen, Ian Desmond, Danny Espinosa, Derek Norris and all the rest of our top-flight prospects. We are going to dictate to them how we are going to handle their careers. But it's always in the best interest of the player and the organization." [READ]

Reliever Derrick Turnbow believes that his chances of making of the Marlins are "over" after he left Tuesday's game with severe shoulder pain.

Turnbow said he was sure he would "be shutdown for while."

He will undergo an MRI on Wednesday and surgery appears to be a possibility. [READ]

Blue Jays starting pitcher David Purcey is reportedly drawing attention on the trade market.

"#Cubs scout saw Jays' Jason Frasor get hammered Sunday, but Frasor was under weather. Jays' David Purcey also drawing attention from clubs," Ken Rosenthal wrote on his Twitter page.

Purcey went 1-3 with a 6.19 ERA in just nine starts last season. [READ]

The Marlins were one of the teams that had a scout on hand to watch Red Sox third baseman Mike Lowell make his spring debut on Monday.

Lowell's name has come up in discussions within the Marlins organization, but their level of interest in re-acquiring the veteran is unclear. [READ]

Former major leaguer Chuck Knoblauch has pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault on his common-law wife.

Knoblauch entered his plea Tuesday in exchange for deferred-adjudication probation, according to court records.

According to a criminal complaint, Knoblauch's wife told police he hit her in the face and choked her at their Houston home in September. [READ]

Red Sox prospect Ryan Westmoreland underwent brain surgery Tuesday that was successful, according to a statement from the team.

A complete prognosis will not be known for a few days, a team source said, adding that the surgery "went well" for the 19-year-old, who had a cavernous malformation, or angioma, removed from his brain stem.

"Due to the complexity of this surgery, Ryan will face a difficult period initially before beginning his recovery," said the statement. [READ]