The San Francisco Giants signed outfielder Randy Winn to a three-year contract extension through the 2009 season on Tuesday. Per club policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed. Winn, a 31-year-old switch hitter, hit .359 with 14 homers, 26 RBI in 58 games with the Giants after being traded from the Seattle Mariners on July 30, 2005. His .356 batting average and .380 on-base percentage from the leadoff spot in 2005 led all big league players with at least 200 plate appearances atop the lineup.

With nowhere to play following the total revamping of the infield, Tony Graffanino said that he has been told by the Red Sox that every effort will be made in the upcoming weeks to trade him to a team that will allow him to start at second base. Graffanino, who was the Sox? primary second baseman after being acquired from the Kansas City Royals July 19, lost his job when the team acquired Mark Loretta from the San Diego Padres. Graffanino was exploring deals with other teams when the Red Sox surprised him by offering arbitration. The 33-year-old accepted (before reaching an agreement on a one-year, $2.05 million deal), but arrived at spring training behind Loretta and Alex Cora on the second base depth chart. ?It?s an awkward situation, but one I feel I can handle,? said Graffanino, who batted .319 in 51 regular-season games with the Sox. ?I?ll do my business and let everything else play itself out.?

A team source categorized as ''completely untrue" a report out of Washington indicating that the Nationals had offered second baseman Alfonso Soriano to Boston. The same report indicated that the Nationals, in need of starting pitching, might look to deal for Bronson Arroyo or Matt Clement. Washington's most tradeable position players, according to the paper, are first baseman Nick Johnson and outfielder Ryan Church. Arroyo, though, doesn't envision the Sox dealing him for a position player. ''Anything can happen, but I don't find it as being that valid," said Arroyo, signed this offseason to a three-year, $11.25 million deal. ''What's the worst-case scenario? We have seven [starters], right? Well, if I still think I'm one of the 12 best guys, I can still be on the club and pitch. ''Defensively, I don't think we need anybody else. [Unless] they want to go get somebody for me that's an unbelievable arm out of the pen, I don't see any other reason to make any other moves."

Contract talks between the agent of Cubs first baseman Derrek Lee and general manager Jim Hendry could begin later this week. "When I get out to spring training, we will sit down and just commence talks about Derrek at that point," said Lee's agent, Casey Close, who was planning to be in Florida at the start of this week before heading to the Cubs' camp in Arizona. Hendry and Close chatted at the general managers' meetings in December regarding a new contract for the reigning National League batting champion, whose three-year, $22.5 million contract expires at the end of this season. "We have an ongoing working relationship," said Close of IMG. "Jim and I have a good relationship, and we will be very open on the dialogue about Derrek."

Roger Clemens' son took the Rocket deep on his first real pitch of spring training, crushing a trademark fastball over the left-field fence. "That was probably one of the harder fastballs I cut loose," Clemens said after throwing to son Koby and other Houston Astros minor leaguers Monday at Kissimmee, Fla. "He got my attention." Then the Rocket got Koby's. The next time his oldest son came to the plate, Roger buzzed him high and tight with another fastball. The younger Clemens dodged the pitch, then smiled at his father. "He was like, 'Sorry about that pitch inside. I was trying to change the view of the ball for you a little bit,"' said Koby, a third baseman who was drafted by Houston last summer. "I said, 'I knew what you were doing."'

Brad Lidge admitted Monday he is pitching with more gusto now than he normally would at the end of February, especially while throwing a simple round of batting practice to his teammates. Lidge, who is leaving on Thursday for Arizona to begin training with Team USA in the World Baseball Classic, threw to Brad Ausmus, Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio, Adam Everett and Morgan Ensberg on Monday morning during workouts at Osceola County Stadium. "They came out aggressive today," Lidge said. "They were swinging at everything. It was fun to see where they were measuring up and where I was measuring up. They've got some good swings going now."

Los Angeles Angels outfielder Vladimir Guerrero was given Monday off after three cousins died in a car crash in the Dominican Republic. Three males, all first cousins, were killed in the Sunday crash, said Tim Mead, vice president of communications for the Angels. Few other details about the wreck were available. The 2004 AL MVP was given the day off "to spend his time getting in contact with family members. (General manager) Bill Stoneman and (manager) Mike Scioscia felt it was best for Vladimir to have some time to tend to whatever he needs to tend to," Mead said.

One day after Brian Lawrence's shoulder surgery, the Washington Nationals addressed their dire starting pitching situation Monday by agreeing to terms with 35-year-old right-hander Pedro Astacio for a one-year contract. However, the Nationals are taking no chances with Astacio. General manager Jim Bowden said the deal would not be completed -- and that he would not comment on it -- until Astacio undergoes an MRI on his right shoulder and right elbow Wednesday. Astacio is 124-119 with a 4.61 ERA in 375 games, including 326 starts, over 14 seasons. He went 6-10 with a 4.19 ERA last season for Texas and San Diego.

A's slugger Frank Thomas can't wait for the day that the questions he fields focus solely on his rehab and his new club. Monday wasn't that day. On Sunday, after reading some pointed comments made by Thomas regarding the way the end of his 16-year career with the White Sox was handled, Chicago general manager Ken Williams went on an extended tirade against Oakland's new designated hitter. On Monday morning at Papago Park, Thomas told reporters that he'd spoken with Williams on Sunday night and considered the matter closed. Thomas, who characterized his talk with Williams as lengthy and heated, refused to directly respond to some of Williams' harsher comments, which included calling Thomas "an idiot" and "selfish." "Idiot? Selfish?" Thomas said. "There's nothing there worth a response. ... It's childish. It's time to move on. It's all a bunch of noise to me. ... As far as love lost, there was not much love there, anyway."

Kip Wells has a blood clot near his right arm, and it could lead to surgery that keeps him out of the Pirates' lineup all season. General manager Dave Littlefield yesterday announced Wells has "100 percent blockage" of the axillary-subclavian vein, the primary blood vessel from the chest to the arms and neck. The clot typically is treated first with anticoagulants and, to prevent recurrence, surgery that removes any bone compressing the vein. It was not immediately known if Wells has any bone compressing the vein, but that is highly common in such situations. If he does and elects to have surgery, precedent shows he will need five to eight months to fully recover.