MLB Bullets Won't Listen To Anyone

And then there was one, as far as big ticket free agents go.

• The big news of the past two days is the Indians being the surprise winner in the Michael Bourn sweepstakes with a four year, $48 million contract with a fifth year with a vesting option. Terry Pluto says that Bourn signing with the Indians is just another sign that ownership wants to win. Overall, Pluto says, the Indians had a really good off-season. But there are still some big problems with the Tribe.
• The on-again, wait just a minute, contract extension for Felix Hernandez is officially on. The announcement will come this afternoon.
• It's not often you can say this about a team who hasn't made the playoffs in twenty years and is coming off a losing season, but Vegas has installed the Toronto Blue Jays as the World Series favorites. Oh, my mistake. They're the World Series favourites.
• John Henry is not selling the Red Sox. He's not selling Liverpool either. He doesn't think this is a problem. I don't see why it should be.
• The Astros have narrowed their choice for the first pick in the draft to eight players. No, they're not saying who they are but I suspect those names will be obvious soon. They will say there are no high school pitchers on the list. No word on whether or not they've excluded middle-aged bloggers.
• Miguel Montero says that Trevor Bauer just didn't want to listen to him. Maybe he would if you didn't insist on singing "Call Me Maybe" every time you came to the mound. SBNation's own Grant Brisbee looks at the disagreement from both sides a couple of times.
• Speaking of the Diamondbacks and Trevor Bauer, the big prospect that Arizona got for Bauer, Didi Gregorious, has an elbow injury that will keep him off the field for the next few weeks.
• Terry Collins could be gone in 2014 if the Mets don't show improvement this season, says Eddie D'Anna of the Staten Island Advance. Looking at the Mets roster, I think Collins can safely make travel plans for next March.
• The Giants are sending ten players to the World Baseball Classic.
• Bad news for the Angels as their new closer Ryan Madson is already having elbow problems. Madson missed all of 2012 because of the elbow.
• Mark Saxon of ESPN LA doesn't see the rush to sign Clayton Kershaw to a long-term contract extension.
• Kevin Cowherd of the Baltimore Sun thinks the Orioles may regret not picking up a big hitter this off-season.
• Woody Paige thinks the Rockies are already a mess and the season hasn't begun yet. Yeah, I know. Woody Paige. Think of him as a broken calendar. He's right once a year.
• The Braves came to their senses and scrapped the "Screaming Indian" from their new batting practice caps.
• Gio Gonzalez has categorically denied that he has any connection to the Miami Biogenesis Clinic, although he said he recently discovered that his father had purchased weight-loss supplements from them. Also, Gonzalez has accepted an invitation to pitch for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic.
• The Royals acquired infielder Elliot Johnson as the player-to-be-named-later in the Wil Myers trade.
• The Athletics are expecting Brett Anderson to be a team leader. Anderson says he's up for the task as long as he can be a "lead by example" type of leader and not one that makes speeches. Just imagine that the players in the clubhouse aren't in their underwear, Brett.
• Ricky Nolasco says he's not going to worry if he's the next player the Marlins ship out of Miami.
• Vance Worley got hammered by the Twins last spring for eleven runs in just four innings, which he calls the "worst outing of his career." He's now glad to be pitching for the Twins and not against them.

The Hawkeye women's basketball team lost their fourth straight game by one point to Nebraska.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster, because it will be Valentine's Day.