Posted by Timm Davis on Sunday, November 23, 2008 at 1:28 pm

…Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Chad Billingsley had surgery yesterday after slipping on some ice at his Pennsylvania home. According to a team spokes man Billingsley had a spiral fracture of his left fibula. He had a plate put in and will be in a cast for at least two weeks, though he should be ready to throw come spring training. [Yahoo]

…It maybe just a one line blurb in his recent blog, but Buster Olney is reporting that the Boston Red Sox are preparing to go full steam ahead without “The Captian” Jason Varitek behind the plate come 2009. [ESPN Insider]

…One of the bigger stories this year was all about the broken bats, and how there are way too many of them. Well on Friday experts presented Major League Baseball with recommendations that will hopefully decrease the number of broken bats. MLB collected over 1,700 broken bats in 2 1/2 months this season. [ESPN]

…Two of Cuba’s top players wont be going with the team when they head state side for the World Baseball Classic in March. Pitcher Yadel Marti and star outfielder Yasser Gomez have been thrown off their home country’s best team for what is being termed “a grave act of indiscipline”. According to people close to the team, the reason was for trying to defect to the United States. [ESPN]

…The World Champion Philadelphia Phillies have hired Pete Mackanin as Manager Charlie Manuel’s bench coach. Mackanin has plenty of major league coaching experience with the Pirates and Reds and played briefly for the Phillies in 1978-1979. [Philadelphia Daily News]

…According to Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star Royals pitcher Luke Hudson has opted for Free Agency by refusing his outright assignment to Triple A Omaha. Hudson who’s 31 has missed most of the last two seasons with shoulder and biceps injuries, he didn’t pitch at all during the 2008 season. [Kansas City Star]

…Glen Sample who was the Cincinnati Reds official Scorer has passed away at the age of 77. Sample was best known in the Cincinnati area as a player and later head coach for the University of Cincinnati baseball program. [Cincinnati Enquirer]

…New York Yankees designated hitter Hedeki Matsui will not play in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. He’s so popular in his native Japan that his home is now a museum. He recently had surgery on his left knee at the end of the season. Brian Cashman the Yankees GM made the announcement to, which will lessen the heat of Matsui not playing in the Classic. Matsui received a big amount of heat for not participating in 2006. [News Day]