Rhodes agrees to contract with Rangers
MLB: A person familiar with the negotiations says left-handed reliever Arthur Rhodes has agreed to a contract with the A.L. champion Texas Rangers.
The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Thursday because the agreement had not yet been announced.
The 41-year-old Rhodes was 4-4 with a 2.29 ERA in 69 relief appearances for the Cincinnati Reds last season, when he became a first-time All-Star.
Entering his 20th major league season, Rhodes also has played for Baltimore, Seattle, Oakland, Cleveland, Philadelphia and Florida.
• Marlins sign Nolasco to 3-year deal: Right-handed pitcher Ricky Nolasco signed a three-year, $26.5 million contract with the Florida Marlins.
Nolasco is expected to earn $6 million in 2011, $9 million in 2012 and $11.5 in 2013.
He made $3.8 million last season, when he went 14-9 with a 4.51 ERA. The 28-year-old missed the final month after undergoing arthroscopic right knee surgery.
In a conference call with reporters, Nolasco said he has been running and exercising without any setbacks. “I should be 100 percent by spring training,” he said.
Nolasco is 54-39 with a 4.45 ERA in five years with the Marlins, and his strikeout-walk ratio of 638-169 over that time is among the best in baseball.
• Padres agree to 1-year deal with Hawpe: The San Diego Padres agreed to terms of a one-year contract with Brad Hawpe to play first base, two people with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press.
The people spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal is pending Hawpe passing a physical exam.
Hawpe will replace three-time All-Star Adrian Gonzalez, who was traded to the Boston Red Sox. Hawpe has mostly been an outfielder in seven big league seasons, with a handful of starts at first base.
Hawpe hit a combined .245 with nine homers and 44 RBIs last year. He was an All-Star in 2009 with Colorado, hitting .285 with 23 homers and 86 RBIs.
• Pirates claim Thompson, sign Atkins: The Pittsburgh Pirates claimed minor league left-hander Aaron Thompson off waivers and designated left-hander Wil Ledezma for assignment to create a roster spot.
Thompson was left unprotected by the Washington Nationals, who acquired him from Florida for first baseman Nick Johnson in 2009. Thompson, who made 26 starts at Double-A Harrisburg last season, was a first-round pick by the Marlins in 2005.
In a minor league trade, the Pirates acquired infielder-outfielder Corey Wimberley from Oakland for right-hander Ryan Kelly.
• Rockies acquire RHP Lindstrom from Astros: The Colorado Rockies bolstered their bullpen by acquiring right-handed reliever Matt Lindstrom from the Houston Astros.
In exchange, the Rockies sent minor league pitchers Wes Musick and Jonnathan Aristil to Houston.
NCAA continues to mull penalties
Miscellany: The NCAA has been busy this season, investigating schools from Auburn to Georgia to North Carolina while trying to crack down on problems tied to sports agents.
Most of the investigations are open cases with unknown consequences for the schools.
But an NCAA panel two years ago has recommended stricter punishments for schools tabbed as serious rules violators – recommendations that remain under consideration and could mark the first substantive revision to the NCAA’s penalty system since 1985.
The subcommittee of the Division I Committee on Infractions offered its recommendations in October 2008 to the Division I Board of Directors.
The panel’s report is confidential. But interviews with the group’s former chairman and others knowledgeable about its contents indicate the recommendations include:
• A requirement that all schools found guilty of major violations lose scholarships. Current NCAA rules list that sanction as a “presumptive” penalty.
• TV bans, a penalty not applied to Division I violators since 1996.
• Clarified penalties for repeat offenders. The “death penalty” – a program-crippling blow that keeps a team off the field while banning recruiting and scholarship awards – has been on the books for 25 years but applied only once, to Southern Methodist for a pay-for-play football scandal in 1987.
• Rodriguez claims he won’t lobby for job: Michigan football coach Rich Rodriguez says he won’t lobby publicly to keep his job.
Privately, athletic director Dave Brandon may ask him to do just that.
The first-year A.D. has steadfastly stuck by his plan to evaluate Rodriguez after the season, which closes against No. 21 Mississippi State in the Gator Bowl on New Year’s Day.
Speculation has swirled that Brandon is going to fire Rodriguez and try to hire Orange Bowl-bound Stanford coach and former Wolverines quarterback Jim Harbaugh to lead college football’s winningest program.
Rodriguez is 15-21 overall, 6-18 in the Big Ten and 1-10 against ranked teams in three seasons at Michigan. Brandon has said the NCAA violations committed under Rodriguez didn’t give him cause to terminate his deal.