Cutnpaste: - Carlos Delgado, Joe Torre, Jeff Keppinger, Law on Garza Deal, and Dwight Gooden

Michael G. Baron

Carlos Delgado:

Carlos Delgado looks like the king of the world. Just as he looked after hitting a second-deck homer at the Rogers Centre, crossing home plate and removing his helmet to show a shaved noggin while Blue Jays fans stood and cheered. On this day, he is sitting in a lawn chair, his son Carlos propped on his right knee, his 17-month-old daughter Mariana sitting patiently on his left. Unseen for those past 17 months, Delgado has not retired. He still wants to play. And he hopes to sign with a team in time to get some spring training at-bats. - torontosun  



Joe Torre:

Joe Torre, the former manager who led the Yankees to four World Series titles and six American League pennants, is in talks with baseball commissioner Bud Selig about joining MLB as executive vice president of operations, according to sources familiar with the talks. Torre, who stepped down as the manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers at the end of the 2010 season, has had ongoing discussions with Selig to fill the job once held by Mets general manager Sandy Alderson. If Torre accepts the job, he would in turn be responsible for hiring a replacement for Bob Watson, who resigned in December as VP of rules and on-field operations due to health concerns. -

nydailynews  



Jeff Keppinger:

Astros infielder Jeff Keppinger will have surgery on his left foot and will miss the start of the season. The team said Friday that an injury sustained last Aug. 16, originally diagnosed as a sprained big toe, has not healed. Keppinger will be operated on by Dr. Robert Anderson on Jan. 14 in Charlotte, N.C., and a sesamoid bone that connects to the big toe will be removed. The estimated recovery time is three to four months. - espn.  



Law on Garza Deal:

The parameters of the deal that ESPNChicago.com's Bruce Levine reported have Matt Garza headed to the Cubs in exchange for pitcher Chris Archer, outfielder Brandon Guyer, catcher Robinson Chirinos, shortstop Hak-Ju Lee and outfielder Sam Fuld. Minor league outfielder Fernando Perez will also head to Chicago with Garza. Starting with the prospects, I love this trade for Tampa Bay. They got more for Garza than Kansas City did for Zack Greinke, although their package of players is, collectively, further away than what the Royals got. It looks to me like the Rays focused less on position and more on overall value. - .espn.  



Dwight Gooden:

Sometimes he is unfairly judged by what he should have been, instead of what he did. A .649 winning percentage is higher than Seaver’s. Won Rookie of the Year in 1984, and had one of the best seasons in modern history in 1985 (24-4, 1.52 ERA). The league average pitching after 1988 shouldn’t overshadow his accomplishments. Was it drugs or over usage that did him in? I say a combination of both, as Doc might have seen decline physically even if he stayed away from drugs. - nybaseballdigest