Giants purchased the contracts of OFs Darren Ford and Francisco Peguero, RHP Kevin Pucetas and 1B Brett Pill.
Each are protected from December's Rule 5 draft. Ford, 24, already known for his world-class-speed, raised his stock a bit in 2009, batting .300/.386/.463 with nine homers, 50 RBI, 35 stolen bases and 81 runs scored in 101 games with Class A San Jose. For a guy who didn't show much until this season, making the 40-man roster is a real accomplishment. Nov. 20 - 11:01 pm et

New Padres general manager Jed Hoyer had a "cordial" meeting with Adrian Gonzalez's agent John Boggs on Friday, Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com reports.
"There wasn't any kind of negotiating or exchanging of numbers or anything like that," said Boggs in what was effectively a meet-and-greet with Hoyer. "I'm sure we're going to keep the dialogue open, but nothing is imminent at this point. The way we're looking at it, Adrian is a Padre until something happens. And they're the ones who are really in control of the situation." Gonzalez, 27, is under team control for two more seasons, but would reap a boatload of prospects in a potential trade. Nov. 20 - 10:43 pm et
Source: ESPN.com

Dodgers purchased the contract of RHP Luis Guerra from Double-A Chattanooga.
Guerra, 24, was 6-2 with a 2.60 ERA in 51 relief appearances between Class A Great Lakes and Double-A Chattanooga in 2009. He was the Dodgers fourth-round pick in 2004. Nov. 20 - 10:28 pm et

Pirates designated catcher Robinzon Diaz for assignment.
Diaz, 25, was out of major league options. He batted .279/.307/.357 with one home run and 19 RBI in 129 at-bats with the Pirates this season, however he was behind Ryan Doumit and Jason Jaramillo on the depth chart. Nov. 20 - 10:04 pm et

Pirates designated LHP Justin Thomas for assignment.
Thomas, 25, was just claimed off waivers at the end of October. That said, his 4.48 ERA and 53/40 K/BB ratio in 60 1/3 innings at Triple-A Tacoma this season wasn't all that impressive anyway. Nov. 20 - 9:58 pm et

Pirates designated RHP Jeff Karstens for assignment.
The move comes as a bit of a surprise, however the Pirates deemed it necessary since he was out of major league options. Karstens was cleared in order to make room for Chris Jakubauskas, who was claimed from the Mariners on Friday. Karstens, 27, was 4-6 with a 5.42 ERA and 1.48 WHIP in 39 appearances (13 starts) with the Pirates in 2009. Though he doesn't strike many people out, or possess great control for that matter, he should garner some interest as a spot-starter or long reliever. Nov. 20 - 9:53 pm et

Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports cites a source who says the Blue Jays and Dodgers have resumed talks of a possible Roy Halladay trade.
Brown adds that it looks like new general manger Alex Anthopoulos "is restarting the process of moving Doc." Earlier today, in a report from Carrie Muskat of MLB.com, we learned that the Blue Jays told the Cubs that they intend to move the 32-year-old right-hander this winter. Of the teams linked in conversation regarding Halladay, the Dodgers may need Halladay the most. Nov. 20 - 9:38 pm et
Source: Tim Brown on Twitter

Rockies purchased the contracts of RHPs Alberto Alburquerque, Edgmer Escalona, Juan Nicasio and Chaz Roe and C Michael McKenry.
Each are protected from the upcoming Rule 5 draft. Nicasio, 23, was 9-3 with 115 strikeouts in 112 innings with Class A Asheville, while leading the South Atlantic League with a 2.41 ERA. Nov. 20 - 9:22 pm et

Mariners purchased the contracts of OF Ezequiel Carrera, RHPs Anthony Varvaro, Danny Cortes, Ricky Orta, J.C. Ramirez and LHP Edward Paredes.
The players are now safe from being selected during December's Rule 5 draft. Carrera, who was acquired from the Mets in the J.J. Putz trade last December, batted .337/.441/.416 with two homers, 38 RBI, 27 stolen bases and 68 runs scored in 91 games for Double-A West Tennessee in 2009. Varvaro, 25, will be the starting pitcher for Peoria in Saturday's Arizona Fall league title game. Nov. 20 - 8:37 pm et

Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik said 2009 second overall pick Dustin Ackley will start working out at second base.
"We are not etching this into stone to say this guy will be the second baseman of the future," Zduriencik said. "It's just something we do." Ackley's work at second base should give Zduriencik a better indication of what to do personnel-wise going forward, since the 21-year-old is expected to arrive in the majors rather quickly. Ackley was a first baseman with North Carolina, but has played in the outfield during his pro debut in the Arizona Fall League. Nov. 20 - 8:22 pm et
Source: Seattle Times

Reds purchased the contracts of OF Chris Heisey, IF Chris Valaika, RHPs Enerio Del Rosario, Logan Ondrusek, Jordan Smith and LHPs Phillippe Valiquette and Travis Wood.
The seven were added to the team's 40-man roster in preparation for December's Rule 5 draft. Heisey, who turns 25 in December, is the most highly-regarded, batting .314/.379/.521 with 22 home runs and 77 RBI between Double-A Carolina and Triple-A Louisville in 2009. Depending on whether the Reds tender a contract to Jonny Gomes, Heisey could open next season in the major leagues. Nov. 20 - 7:54 pm et

Stephen Strasburg will not need surgery on his left knee, reports Bill Ladson of MLB.com.
An entire fanbase exhales. Strasburg made a visit to Dr. Lewis Yocum in Los Angeles as a precaution, but was told that some therapy and rest should do the trick. Strasburg was scratched from Saturday's start in the Arizona Fall League championship game because of a twisted left knee, suffered while shagging flyballs on Thursday. An initial MRI showed some inflammation in the knee, but the Nationals looked to have dodged a bullet on this one. He should be on track for spring training. Nov. 20 - 7:33 pm et
Source: MLBlogs.com

Padres purchased the contracts of LHP Steve Garrison, RHP Craig Italiano and OF Chad Huffman.
Each are now protected from December's Rule 5 draft. Garrison, 23, was one of the three players the Padres received from the Brewers in the Scott Linebrink trade during the 2007 season. That they chose to protect him is a bit of a surprise since he suffered a serious injury to his right knee in the Arizona Fall League that will require surgery. He likely won't begin a throwing program until June of next year. Garrison was 1-2 with a 5.56 ERA in 13 games (12 starts) between three stops in the San Diego organization in 2009. Nov. 20 - 7:28 pm et

Josh Johnson and the Marlins have reached an "impasse" on contract talks, leaving the chances of a multi-year agreement in doubt.
"Based on our conversations, there's no chance of doing a long-term deal with the Marlins," Johnson's agent Matt Sosnick said. "We made it clear that it was going to be this year or it wasn't going to happen. It was now or never. And the Marlins agreed." According to Sosnick, the Marlins weren't comfortable offering anything more than a three-year deal. Johnson, under team control through 2011, is due to make $4 million as an arbitration-eligible player next season. Nov. 20 - 7:12 pm et
Source: ESPN.com

Yankees purchased the contracts of OF Austin Jackson, INFs Reegie Corona, Eduardo Nunez, Kevin Russo and RHPs Hector Noesi, Ivan Nova and Romulo Sanchez.
The seven are now protected from December's Rule 5 draft. Jackson, 22, batted .300/.354/.405 with four home runs, nine triples, 23 doubles, 65 RBI and 24 stolen bases in 132 games for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2009, and is often mentioned as New York's center fielder of the future. Nov. 20 - 6:49 pm et