But thatrsquos to be expected hersquos 38

Curtis Granderson is known as one of the best people in baseball, and adding that to the clubhouse can never hurt. Look for Granderson to rebound in 2010 and thrive in pinstripes.This trade is a huge win for the Yanks and makes them an even more dangerous team than they were yesterday.. He might start, he could back up Jesus Flores, and he most certainly will be a mentor to both Flores and the bevy of young pitchers the Nationals have waiting to join the big club. But this morning, the “great news” has begun to turn into second-guessing. The Washington Post’s Dave Sheinin reported this morning that “baseball insiders” keep taking him aside and asking him why the Nationals agreed to this deal. Fans seem to have awoke from a drunk so deep that they dreamt the Nationals had actually done something right. Who did they sign A 38-year-old catcher who had to wait until spring training last year to get a one-year, $1.5 million contract from the Houston Astros gets a $6 million deal after playing like the aforementioned 38-year-old last year He hasn’t had an on-base percentage above .340 in five years, and last year it was a woeful .280.

His batting average has been in a tail-spin, and, really, he is just a shell of the player he was at his prime. But that’s to be expected; he’s 38. Since no one can come up with the definitive answer as to whether this was a good move, I guess I will. This was a terrible financial move, but a pretty good baseball one. Look, the Nationals seem unwilling to spend money on “temporary” free agents, guys who will cost the team a great deal of money but won’t in the end help the team become a winner. But a team like the Washington Nationals, who are still in “laughingstock mode,” has to overpay to get what it wants, and I find the team’s willingness to do that hopeful. Remember, it was the Detroit Tigers who were baseball’s laughingstock a few years back until they overpaid to get Pudge, and a couple of years later, they were in the World Series. Many have suggested that the Nationals could have gotten just as good a catcher perhaps even better by signing someone like Brad Ausmus to a contract worth much less That’s true, of course. But no one seriously believes that Ausmus could have mentored Flores or helped the young pitchers like Rodriguez will. So, really, it’s all about money. Well, the Nationals have already said that they weren’t interested in signing any exceedingly large free agent contracts this offseason, which means those $6 million weren’t taken from somewhere else. It didn’t cost the team another player. But most importantly, we have to remember that this deal happened because new General Manager Mike Rizzo believed it would help the Nationals. It’s not like Jim Bowden got drunk last night and woke up with a hangover, only to find a pen and signed contract in bed with him. No, I trust Rizzo. If he believes this was an important step, than this was an important step He’s given me no reason to question him. Either way, he’s a step up from Wil Nieves and Josh Bard, and Nationals’ fans should be pleased that Rizzo is methodically finding the holes in the S.S.

National and plugging them so quickly. His deals thus far might not have been sexy, but they have sure been needed.. The Braves thought free agent reliever Rafael Soriano’s agent Peter Greenberg was bluffing over the weekend when he claimed his client was seriously considering accepting Atlanta’s arbitration offer by Monday’s midnight deadline.Turns out he wasn’t.Soriano chose to take arbitration and return to the Braves on a one-year deal that could net him between $7 and $8 million in 2010.The decision to accept a one-year, non-guaranteed arbitration offer over exploring free agent offers that could have landed Soriano a multi-year deal came as quite the surprise to Atlanta.The Braves were almost certain that Soriano, along with Mike Gonzalez, two of the highest ranked free agent relievers, would decline the team’s arbitration offers, and as a result the Braves would receive two compensatory draft picks for each when they departed.Gonzalez, a Scott Boras client, declined as expected, but Soriano’s decision to take the Braves’ offer shows he wasn’t garnering the type of attention on the free agent market that he had hoped for.His agent spoke with the New York Yankees and Houston Astros before announcing Soriano’s decision late Monday night, but didn’t receive indication that his client would be better off declining arbitration and continuing talks with these clubs about a suitable multi-year offer.The Braves, who with the offseason additions of Billy Wagner and Takashi Saito, had already replaced Soriano at the back end of their bullpen and seemingly do not have the money in their budget to afford to keep him as a high priced middle reliever next season.Even though retaining Soriano would give the Braves arguably one of the deepest bullpen’s in all of baseball, the club will now look to deal the right-hander, once they receive permission from him to do so.Atlanta believes Soriano will give them the go-ahead to trade him by the June 15 deadline once he receives word of his diminished role with the club if he were to remain with the Braves in 2010.GM Frank Wren hadn’t anticipated having to deal with this headache, but has said that Soriano’s decision to accept arbitration will not deter the Braves from following through with the rest of their offseason plans.Wren will continue to be aggressive in his pursuit of a right-handed bat and believes having a new bargaining chip in Soriano only enhances the team’s options and ability to make trades this winter.While Soriano’s surprising decision to return to the Braves was the biggest news for the club from the first day of the Major League Baseball winter meetings in Indianapolis, other developments have the team actively shopping 2B Kelly Johnson and RHP Derek Lowe.The Braves have reported heavy interest in Kelly Johnson from multiple other clubs and also now have reason to believe they will be able to move Lowe and the majority of his high-priced contract this winter.Atlanta has let it be known they may be willing to eat a portion of Lowe’s salary, which has made him more attractive to potential suitors, but have been led to believe that once John Lackey signs, interest in Lowe will only heat up.The club looks to continue talks about both of those players, as well as continuing its search for a power bat, as the meetings continue this week. This article is also featured on Ace of Braves. Mad Catz(R) Introduces New Saitek(R) Aviator Flight Sticks for Xbox 360(R), PCand PLAYSTATION(R)3SAN DIEGO, Jan. 7, /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ Mad Catz(R) Interactive, Inc.("Mad Catz" or "the Company") (AMEX: MCZ; TSX), a leading third-partyinteractive entertainment accessory provider, announced today the expansion ofthe Aviator line of flight sticks to include two new models - the Saitek(TM)Aviator Flight Stick for Xbox 360(R) and the Saitek Aviator Flight Stick forPLAYSTATION(R)3.(Logo: http://)A highly advanced combat joystick designed to enhance any flight simulationexperience, the Aviator Flight Stick has been designed with an oversized flatbase for increased stability and features three dedicated Fire Buttons,heavy-duty Combat Trigger and POV (point-of-view) Analog Stick as well as aninnovative Throttle Lever positioned to suit ambidextrous gamers.A twoposition Mode Switch allows for on the fly changes to button configurationproviding ideal controls for selected software such as the Blazing Angels(TM)series.The Flight Sticks have been fully tested to work with the newUbisoft(R) combat flight simulator Tom Clancy's: HAWX(TM).Furthermore bothXbox 360 and PLAYSTATION 3 models are fully PC compatible.The Aviator Flight Stick for Xbox 360 includes an integrated Xbox Live(TM)Headset Connector for real time communication with other players.Inaddition, the Aviator Flight Stick for Xbox 360 features an Xbox Guide Button,displaying player and Xbox Live notifications.The Flight Stick ismanufactured under license by Microsoft(R) and is fully compliant with Xbox360 Flight Stick Sub-Type.The Aviator Flight Stick for PLAYSTATION 3 shares identical specifications tothe Xbox 360 model, differing only via the integrated Home Button which givesinstant access to the PLAYSTATION 3 Cross Media Bar.Darren Richardson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Mad Catzcommented, "The new Aviator Flight Sticks for Xbox 360 and PLAYSTATION 3manages to combine Saitek's PC Flight Stick heritage with Mad Catz' nextgeneration console expertise.The Flight Sticks expand our portfolio ofspecialty controllers enabling us to reach new consumer demographics.Webelieve the Aviator will prove itself to be the ideal controller for gamersrequiring an authentic and highly accurate experience when playing flightsimulation titles." Tom Yu, Brand Manager for Tom Clancy's: HAWX at Ubisoft(R) added furtherinsight, commenting "The Aviator Flight Sticks provide gamers with levels ofaccuracy and control that gamepad users can only dream of."The Saitek Aviator Flight Stick for Xbox 360 (model: PS41) is expected to shipacross North America this month with an MSRP of $49.99.The Saitek Aviator Flight Stick for PLAYSTATION 3 (model: PS40) is expected toship across North America this month with an MSRP of $49.99.For further information please contact:MediaAlex Verrey: Global PR & Communications Manager - t 44 (0) 1908 336 538e. Michael Greco: Vice President of Marketing - t 1-619-321-3564e. InvestorsJoseph Jaffoni, David Jacoby - Jaffoni & Collins Incorporated - t.212/835-8500e.