Hiroki Kuroda, Rafael Soriano and Nick Swisher each rejected their qualifying offers from the Yankees.

Lee MacPhail, soft-spoken, steadfast, and above all, reasonable, was the primary representative of the second generation of a family that has served the game since the 1930s and remains involved. He died Thursday at age 95 in Delray Beach, Fla., his home in recent years.

Josh Hamilton, who is looking for a long-term contract worth $20-25 million annually, has turned down the Rangers’ qualifying offer of $13.3 million.

Mariano Rivera flashed his smooth, iconic form as he lobbed the baseballs toward a protected cameraman, showing no ill effects from a torn right anterior cruciate ligament, an injury that truncated his season in May.

Do you want to know who will walk away with the Baseball Writers’ Association of America hardware next week? Look no further.

The Cubs are believed to be one of several teams to submit a qualifying bid on Thursday for Korean left-handed pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu.

Coming off a whirlwind summer in which he was the top pick in the First-Year Player Draft, graduated from high school and made his professional baseball debut, Carlos Correa is back to work for the Astros.

The Brewers and the agent for Corey Hart are discussing an extension that would keep the veteran slugger in Milwaukee after his contract expires following next season.

Much like this season’s Giants, the 2003 Florida Marlins banded together behind no-nonsense manager Jack McKeon to shock the baseball world.

Coming off a career year and signed to an affordable deal, R.A. Dickey’s trade value will never be higher, and he could bring back a haul of prospects in return.

As the leading pitcher available on the 2012-13 free-agent market, Zack Greinke is in an ideal bargaining position. Among the teams that want to be his next employer are teams with a proven ability to pay.

A second day of talks at the General Managers Meetings left Ned Colletti thinking he might be able to trade for a starting pitcher after all.

Geno Espineli didn’t grow up in the Philippines. It didn’t register that he could make a significant impact in the country of his ancestry until he made it to the Majors, in 2008. Now 30, he was contacted in August about playing for Team Philippines in a World Baseball Classic qualifier, and he “did not hesitate a second.”

The Red Sox on Thursday announced a restructuring of their medical staff, which general manager Ben Cherington hopes will solve any inefficiencies within that group.

Walt Weiss may be a first-time manager who spent last year coaching high school ball in the Denver area, but his players believe he built his credibility in ways that matter — his 14-season career and the familiarity be built with many Rockies who came up through the system a few years back.

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman has experience searching for players at the margins. He’ll need to tap that experience this offseason.

The official word will scroll across Brian Cashman’s phone at some point Friday, but even the Yankees’ general manager is not holding his breath for responses to his free-agent qualifying offers.