The Orioles today announced that they have agreed to terms with infielder Robert Andino on a one-year contract, thus avoiding arbitration. Andino, 27, batted .263/.327/.344 in 2011 for the Orioles, setting career-highs in games (139), at-bats (457), runs (63), hits (120), doubles (22), home runs (5), RBIs (36), stolen bases (13), walks (41) and total bases (157). He appeared defensively at second and third base, shortstop and left field.

The Orioles are getting some criticism for signing Wilson Betemit to a two-year contract. Not only is it a two-year deal, but there is a vesting option for the 2014 season. This for a player that has never been a season-long regular for any team and has never had more than 373 at-bats in any one season. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com and MLB Network wrote this late yesterday via Twitter: lost in huge day is how wilson betemit gets $3.25M guaranteed for 2 w/ $3.2M vesting option for '14 w/...

With the trade of a pair of top pitchers in the Nationals' system (Brad Peacock and Tom Milone), there will be roster availability at Triple-A Syracuse in 2012 for starting pitchers. One of the hurlers who will get an extended look in spring training to fill the void is right-hander Erik Arnesen. Arnesen blazed through Double-A last season, going 8-4 with a 2.43 ERA and 122 strikeouts in 26 games, including 16 starts. He was called up to Syracuse late in the campaign, going 0-2. You really...

Prince Fielder is off the board, and we're left to ponder how much the Orioles were really in on him. Or we can just move on and never again speak his name. I felt a sense of relief yesterday after news broke that Fielder had agreed to a nine-year, $214 million contract with the Tigers, who get to wear the 2012 label of "Scott Boras' Mystery Team." Not because, as a few readers suggested, I didn't want the Orioles to sign him. Preposterous. Why would I root against a feared left-handed...

Randy Tomlin announced at the end of last season that he had decided to take a leave of absence for family reasons. The Harrisburg Senators' pitching coach stepped away from the game and is currently with his family at home in Lynchburg, Va., but is still keeping up with the Nationals' organization and hopes to return soon. "We are doing well," Tomlin said. "The decision to leave was something I felt I had to do to take care of some very pressing needs here at home within my family. It...

There's not much more to say about Prince Fielder's decision to agree to a nine-year, $214 million contract with the Tigers this afternoon, ending the most drawn-out free agent pursuit of the offseason. Several of the clubs interested in the slugging first baseman could have offered him the chance to win. Several of those teams could have offered him the opportunity to reprise Reggie Jackson's persona as the straw that stirs the drink. A couple could have offered him long-term security....

In the end, while the Detroit Tigers have come seemingly out of nowhere to get Prince Fielder, to me it's no surprise that Fielder ended up with a winning team and in the American League. Any team willing to give a player those years and that money - and it's been reported as a nine-year, $214 million deal - better at least have the designated hitter spot ready for him at some point. I think that's an insane contract, but I felt the same way about the Albert Pujols deal with the...

According to multiple reports, Prince Fielder isn't coming to Washington. The Tigers have agreed to sign the slugging first baseman to a nine-year deal worth $214 million. Five days after Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski said of Fielder, "He doesn't fit for us. He's looking for a long-term deal and that just doesn't fit," theTigers swooped in at the end of the negotiations, emerging as the mystery team that snagged the powerful left-handed hitter. Assuming those contract figures are true, the...

The Orioles aren't "in on" Prince Fielder anymore, no matter your definition. According to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com, the Tigers have reached agreement with Fielder on a nine-year deal worth $214 million. There's your mystery team. Agent Scott Boras never fails to find one. The Tigers lost Victor Martinez to a knee injury that most likely will require season-ending surgery, but they figured to search for a temporary replacement. Early speculation had them interested in Johnny Damon,...

Washington Nationals broadcast partners Mid-Atlantic Sports Network (MASN) and 106.7 The Fan will broadcast a total of 13 Nationals Spring Training matchups throughout the weeks leading up to the start of the 2012 regular season. The Nationals 2012 Grapefruit League schedule features six games televised by MASN and nine games airing on 106.7 The Fan, with one broadcast on partner station WNEW 1580 AM. 106.7 The Fan will broadcast the first game of the spring on March 3 when the Nationals play...