MLB Bullets Gets Booed In Texas

I got nuttin' to go up here today.

• It may have rubbed some people the wrong way, but Jon Paul Morosi thinks baseball should embrace the exuberance that the Dominican Republic showed in the World Baseball Classic. He thinks the winner of the WBC should be allowed to re-write baseball's "unwritten code."
• Tom Verducci at Sports Illustrated believes that Team Dominican Republic's show of sportsmanship needs to be integrated into the game. After winning, the Dominican team all went over to Team Puerto Rico and shook hands. It's a good point. If the NHL can shake hands after a playoff series, why can't MLB?
• Jimmy Rollins wants to double the number of WBCs by having them every two years instead of four. The thinking is that players get excited about the tournament while it's going on, but that passion is forgotten four years later.
• Fernando Rodney, who was unhittable during the WBC, says the tournament left him ready to start the season. Also, he will not be bringing his "Magic Plantain" with him to the Rays.
• On the dark side of the WBC, Hanley Ramirez is going to have surgery on his thumb and will miss two months. The injury has left the Dodgers scrambling to fill a hole in their infield.
• Jonah Keri over at Grantland has a long interview with Coco Crisp on the art of basestealing. It's very much worth reading.
• Why is Adrian Gonzalez's Dad suing MLB? A look at the troubled relationship that major league baseball and the Mexican League have with Mexican players.
• Bob Nightengale of USA Today says that MLB is out to nail Ryan Braun.
• Josh Hamilton is ready to be booed at Rangers Ballpark. As he points out, they've booed him before.
• Hal McCoy thinks the Reds should acknowledge the inevitable and make Aroldis Chapman their closer. Famed Indians closer from the eighties, Ricky Vaughn, agrees. Reports are that they have made that call, but so far the team has denied it.
• Jay Jaffe asks whether the Giants should lock up Buster Posey with a long-term contract. The answer is yes, but maybe they should wait until next off-season when he's (probably) not coming off an MVP award.
• Wallace Matthews of ESPN New York says that Yankees fans have to realize that time and injuries have finally caught up to Derek Jeter Jeter is likely going to start the season on the disabled list.
• The Yankees are taking a look at signing Chien-Ming Wang to a minor league contract, off of his impressive WBC performance.
• As expected, David Wright was named the fourth team captain in Mets history. The other four were Keith Hernandez, Gary Carter, John Franco and Mr. Met.
• The Marlins are still trying to decide on a center fielder. In truth, they've already made that decision and it's Christian Yelich, but he's got to go to the minors for a while so that the Marlins can gain an extra season of pre-arbitration control.
• Ben Cherington lists the factors that the Red Sox have to consider concerning Jackie Bradley starting the season as their center fielder.
• Following up a story from the last MLB Bullets, Stephen Drew saw the concussion specialist in Pittsburgh and he was cleared to resume baseball activities.
• Another player whose stock rose with his WBC performance: The Brewers were very happy with the way Hiram Burgos pitched. He's still starting the season in the minors, however.
• The Mariners went to spring training with three of the top pitching prospects in baseball, but all of them are back in the minors while Brandon Maurer is still in line to make the opening day rotation. When asked if the "Big 3" should now be called "The Fantastic Four," Maurer claimed dibs on being the Human Torch.
• Mark DeRosa says he's finally healthy and excited to start the season with the Blue Jays. He's in Toronto now? Round, round get around, I get around.
• Finally, in something that I guess affects me personally, the Sacramento River Cats have announced a $1 fine for any member of the media who misspells their name. It's not Rivercats, River cats, RiverCats or Solons. I guess I'd better watch it during the Minor League Wraps. The money goes to their charitable foundation. Also, twitter and text messages are exempt, as are any handwritten notes.

The Iowa Hawkeyes Wrestling Team is fourth after two rounds of the NCAA Tournament. I'm going to be honest here. Despite being an Iowa alum, I really don't understand wrestling.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster, because it will be Saturday.