A message to the Yankees and their fans from Alex Rodriquez: I'm not going anywhere.

"Alex has no plans at all to retire,'' one source with close personal ties to the third baseman told ESPNNewYork.com on Thursday.

Another source passed this along: "Alex says he's working diligently on his rehabilitation and is looking forward to getting back on the field as soon as possible.''

Albert Pujols hopes to play for the Dominican Republic after the second round of the World Baseball Classic.

He had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee in October. Pujols would need special permission from the Angels to take part in the Classic.

However, Jerry Dipoto told the Los Angeles Times on Monday that Pujols will not play for the Dominican Republic.

Michael Pineda is set to reach a major hurdle in his recovery from right shoulder surgery, graduating to tossing from a half mound on Tuesday at New York's complex in Tampa.

Pineda, 24, missed all of the 2012 season due to injury after being acquired from the Mariners in January.

Brian Cashman said that the organization is hopeful that the right-hander will be an option at the big league level by June or July.

Reports surfaced last month that Cole Hamels dealt with shoulder issues last season.

"I don't know of anything that happened," Hamels insisted. "I've been healthy. That's the last thing on my list. ... I haven't felt anything of that sort. That's the honest truth. I don't know. I wasn't the one that started it. I know I feel good and I'm ready to go. That's all I can really answer. That's kind of where it is. Same program, ready for Spring Training and finally getting out of the cold. That will be a lot nicer. I'm very excited."

When asked about the report, Ruben Amaro said the Phillies shut down Hamels' throwing program for a couple of weeks and he has been fine since.

Albert Pujols will not represent the Dominican Republic at the World Baseball Classic.

He had arthroscopic surgery to clean up his right knee in October.

The Los Angeles Times reported Pujols was not cleared by Major League Baseball nor the MLB Players Association due to liability issues connected to the surgery.

Derek Jeter has worked out on a baseball field for the first time since breaking his left ankle last October.

He fielded 55 grounders on the grass in front of the infield dirt at shortstop Monday at the team's minor league complex. He also hit in a batting cage.

"Everything went well," Jeter says.

The 13-time All-Star expects to start in New York's opener against Boston on April 1.

Carl Pavano had his spleen removed after a fall in the snow last week.

The 37-year-old was hurt in mid-January at his home in Vermont and has been in a Connecticut hospital for nearly two weeks.

"He lost a lot of blood. It was very, very serious," agent David Pepe said.

Pepe said Pavano didn't think he was seriously injured after the fall, then didn't feel well following a workout a few days later in Connecticut.

"He felt bad enough that he went to the hospital and he ended up getting admitted, and they realized he had a lacerated spleen," Pepe said. "They tried to control the bleeding. They did all they could to not take it out and, unfortunately, he didn't stop bleeding and he's been in the hospital since."

Pepe hopes Pavano will be released from the hospital this week.

Danny Espinosa played with torn rotator cuff in his left, non-throwing shoulder late last season.

He decided not to have offseason surgery and instead rehab the injury.

Espinosa was hurt when he dove for a ball in a game in early September. On Sept. 17, he got a cortisone shot to relieve the pain. The next day, he said he had a bone bruise in his shoulder socket.

Ryan Kalish has suffered another setback as he attempts to return to the Major Leagues.

Kalish, who made his big league debut in 2010 but missed all of the 2011 season and most of 2012 with neck and shoulder injuries, will require surgery on his right [non-throwing] shoulder and will miss spring training, according to a source.

Corey Hart is expected to be sidelined four months after undergoing right knee surgery on Friday morning.

Dr. William Raasch repaired a small tear to Hart's meniscus and debrided the knee joint, removing damaged tissue to heal the surrounding tissue.

The same surgery had originally been scheduled for Tuesday, but was delayed while Hart sought a second opinion of his MRI.