With less than two weeks until Opening Day, let's run down the past seven days here at MLBTR…
- Luis Castillo's time with the Mets finally came to a close this week, when New York released him with one year remaining on his contract. Castillo hopes to latch on with another team.
- The Reds agreed on an extension for backup catcher Ryan Hanigan this week. The three-year deal will guarantee Hanigan, 30, a total of $4MM.
- Other extensions could follow soon, particularly one for Adrian Gonzalez in Boston. The two sides may resume extension talks soon. C.J. Wilson is another extension candidate, though he and the Rangers put their talks on hold for now.
- Neftali Feliz has been back and forth between starter and closer this Spring, but he appears likely to close for the time being. Texas may pursue relievers later, as manager Ron Washington prefers a veteran closer. If it comes to that, Texas can likely cross Joakim Soria off their list; Kansas City is planning to hang onto him.
- Early in the week we heard that the Rangers were still seeking top prospects for Michael Young, but as Opening Day draws near, we learned that they're willing to eat as much as half of his contract to make that happen.
- Doug Davis will audition for teams in the coming week. He's not the only one trying to showcase his stuff; the Yankees watched Kevin Millwood throw last week as well.
- Leon'ys Martin, an elite 22-year-old Cuban prospect, became a free agent and is talking with Major League teams.
- We saw three different players call it quits this week: Jason Davis ended his comeback attempt, Ian Snell officially retired, and Scot Shields called it a career as well. Best of luck to all three in life after baseball.
- One player whose retirement status remains uncertain is Bengie Molina; the oldest Molina has said he's retired for now, but his brother Jose said this week that Bengie was still looking to play.
- Teams looking for catching help that don't have interest in Molina may turn to the Nationals. We've heard they're looking to shop catchers, and Ivan Rodriguez's name is the latest to hit the rumor mill.
- Several teams have called the Rangers about the availability of Chris Davis.
- We learned some of the details around Felix Hernandez's no-trade clause this week. The Mariners ace can block trades to ten teams, including the Yankees, Mets, Red Sox, Cubs, Angels, Dodgers, Rangers, and Phillies.
- The Pirates claimed lefty Garrett Olson from the Mariners, and the Blue Jays signed Chris Woodward to a minor league deal. For the rest of the week's minor moves, check our transactions section.
