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Ken Rosenthal makes a boatload of sense with one sentence -
There is only one logical reason for the Twins to trade left-hander Francisco Liriano: fear that he might injure his arm.
Brian Cashman should be very careful if he's thinking of acquiring the lefty. He reportedly offered Ivan Nova and Ramiro Pena more than a month ago, but Minnesota wanted Manny Banuelos. Liriano, to my surprise, was among the AL leaders in several important peripherals: strikeouts, groundballs and home runs. But he has yet to throw 200 innings in a season and had Tommy John Surgery in late 2006. Why would a perennial playoff contender trade their best pitcher when he's still two seasons from free agency?
- David Robertson was very happy pitching to Jesus Montero: "He looked good. He looked real good." It also helped that Jesus threw out a baserunner to end D-Rob's inning.
- Joe Girardi still doesn't know when Russell Martin will catch, but he will DH (again) today. Meanwhile, the forgotten catcher has been Frankie Cervelli, but he worked hard during the offseason to improve his power and stamina.
- Derek Jeter is and has been working very hard on revamping his swing. How long will Girardi give him in the leadoff spot if he maintains a .340 OBP?
- Hank Steinbrenner isn't the only one criticizing MLB's revenue sharing policy. Boston's owner, John Henry, was fined $500K for similar comments that he made following the 2009 season. (Knowledge of the fine didn't leak until now.)
- Even the MLB Network seems to have a big-market bias. The clubs with the most televised Spring Training games are the Yankees and Dodgers, followed by the Red Sox, Angels, Mets, Phillies and Giants.
- In the midst of Charlie Sheen's insanity, he revealed he owns a 1927 Yankees title ring.