Grady Sizemore is fine moving to the second spot in Cleveland's batting order to help increase run potential. "It's a luxury to have a guy like him leading off," said Manny Acta. "Right now, I've got a couple of guys who are no longer here, and we need to lengthen our lineup." Indians second baseman Asdrubal Cabrera will move into the leadoff spot.

Phillies relievers J.C. Romero and Brad Lidge returned to the mound on Sunday for the first time in a long time. Romero threw for the first time since elbow surgery in October to repair a torn flexor tendon, while Lidge threw for the first time since elbow and knee surgeries this offseason. Romero threw 23 pitches, all fastballs, and Lidge threw 35.

South Korean pitcher Chan Ho Park took part in his first workout with the Yankees on Sunday. Park agreed last week to a one-year deal worth $1.2 million. "He's a guy we've noticed the past few years, how he plays up out of the bullpen," Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said. "I think our bullpen is a strength, to be honest. When Chan Ho Park was still on the [free agent] board this late and the ability to get him at $1.2 million, I thought that there was real value there. He makes us deeper."

Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez was involved in a minor accident Thursday on his way to Steinbrenner Field. "I wouldn't even call it (an accident)," Rodriguez told the New York Daily News. "I was going about two miles per hour. It was a fender-bender. "You couldn't even tell on my car. There wasn't even a scratch." Rodriguez said the incident involving his $400,000 Maybach occurred "early" Thursday morning.

The Dodgers haven't ruled out the possibility of Manny Ramirez traveling to Taiwan next month for a three-game exhibition series. Most of the team's marquee players aren't expected to make the trip, which is expected to involve flights of at least 13 hours in each direction. "I don't think any of us will know until we get on the plane [March 10]," Dodgers manager Joe Torre said. "We keep sort of moving people around. But he certainly seems like he is interested in going, let's put it that way."

Since arriving in Pittsburgh, young outfielder Lastings Milledge has been focused and displayed renewed maturity. A former first-round pick, Milledge was cast off by both the Mets and Nationals. "I've been real focused," he said. "I'm just understanding what I need to do out here and the things I have to do to be successful. I'm really keeping my mind on that and staying focused on it." He enjoyed a bright 2009 season, hitting .291 with four home runs, 20 RBIs and six stolen bases in 220 at-bats down the stretch. "He realized that he needed to work," Pirates manager John Russell said. "That was the biggest thing. He taught himself as we helped teach him how to work. I think he's carried that through."

Jeff Samardzija spent time in the Mexican League last fall working on the breaking pitch he needs to be an effective big leaguer. "He used to look like a football player who was trying to pitch," Cubs pitching coach Larry Rothschild said. "Now he looks like a pitcher who just so happened to play football in college. He's come a long way." Chicago has two openings in their rotation. They made a $10 million investment in Samardzija three years ago when they signed him. After a bright debut, he has struggled over the last 18 months. "The stubborn side of me ... expected it to happen overnight," Samardzija said. "The realistic side of me kind of knew it was going to take a little bit. I needed to be able to command another pitch. The curve has come along well."

Rickey Henderson arrived at the spring training facilities of the A's on Saturday, where he will help teach the young team to steal bases. Oakland manager Bob Geren said Henderson's primary focus will be on stealing bases, but he won't be limited to just that.

Chipper Jones is sticking to earlier statements that 2010 could be his final season. Atlanta's longtime third baseman says that he'll walk away from the game if he doesn't have a bounce back year after a disappointing 2008 campaign. Braves manager Bobby Cox is among those who don't believe Jones will walk away from two years and $28 million on his contract, which runs through 2012. "I never took them to heart at all," said Cox of Jones' comments. "He'll play three more years and play them good." Jones hit .264 in 2009 after leading the National League with a .364 average in 2008. "It was a true statement," Jones said. "If I don't play this game at the level I want to play it at, then I will walk away from it."

Derrek Lee is tired of hearing comparisons between Marlon Byrd and Milton Bradley. The Cubs signed Byrd this winter, while Bradley was a free-agent disaster last season. "It's ridiculous," Lee told Bruce Levine and Jonathan Hood on ESPN 1000's "Talkin' Baseball" when asked about possible racial profiling. "If it was a white guy who came over [to the Cubs] would he be [called] the 'anti-Milton Bradley'? It just makes no sense. Marlon's a completely different guy. He wasn't traded for Milton. He signed here as a free agent, so why even bring Milton Bradley's name into it? It really makes no sense and it's just, again, the media trying to make something out of nothing." Bradley's tenure with Cubs was tumultuous. The right fielder accused some fans of hurling racially charged taunts his way at Wrigley Field. "It's definitely not a positive when you're looking at coming to Chicago," Lee said. "But I think overall, the positives do outweigh the negatives and we're baseball players, so we're pretty good at kind of blocking out all of that outside stuff and focusing on in between the lines. And in between the lines, Chicago's a good place to play."