This comes from an official press release from Major League Baseball.

World Baseball Classic, Inc. has reached agreements with ESPN and MLB Network for shared broadcast rights for the 2009 World Baseball Classic, it was announced today. The World Baseball Classic, the world’s premier international baseball tournament, will feature the world’s best players representing 16 countries and territories, and will be played in seven different venues in five nations and territories from March 5 - 23.

The MLB Network is set to debut in Janurary of 2009, ESPN broadcast all the games for the World Baseball Classic in 2006. ESPN in the first round will air the entire Toyko Pool, three games from the Toronto Pool and four games from the San Juan Pool.

The MLB Network will air the entire Mexico City Pool, three games from the Toronto Pool and two games from the San Juan Pool. In the second round the MLB Network will air one game from the San Diego Pool and and four from Miami. ESPN will cover the semi-finals and finals from Chavez Ravine March 21st through 23rd.

…The Finalists for the Ford C Frick award have been announced. The list includes Joe Nuxhall who recently passed away from cancer, he led in the fan votes. The winner will be announces on December 9th and then inducted into Baseball’s Hall Of Fame next summer.

…Boston Red Sox right hander Curt Schilling told the Sporting News that he is considering coming back next year, but only for half a year. Schilling would pull a Clemens and be ready to pitch by the second half of the season for a willing ball club.

“I won’t come back for a full season, that much I know. If I do decide to come back I would work to the point I was ready and somewhere around May 1 let the teams know I wanted to pitch the second half,” he said.

“I’d obviously need to spend June in the minor leagues building it all back up and then hopefully come back and help a team in contention win a World Series. All of this is predicated with the fact that I am completely healthy and able to pitch like I did prior to breaking my shoulder early in 2007.”

…Five Years, $85 million? Yeah according to Tracy Ringolsby of the Rocky Mountain News, that’s the amount of cash it’s going to take to sign one of Scott Boras’ major clients - Manny Ramirez. This of course is coming from Boras himself, who let it be ‘known’ through various media outlets.

…Some of Venezuela’s top players are threatening to boycott next years World Baseball Classic. Magglio Ordonez, Miguel Cabrara and Johan Santana are among the top players who believe the local officials are ignoring them regarding the WBC. One of the reason they’re upset apparently is the naming of Luis Sojo as the teams manager.

“We haven’t been consulted regarding the important issues,” Cabrera told the Associated Press on Monday. “We only want Venezuela to go to the Classic with the best coaches and players, but it’s necessary that we work together.”

…Cory Brock of MLB.com is reporting that San Diego Padres catcher Josh Bard and pitcher Shawn Estes have filed for free agency and have cleared waivers. Also in the piece reliever Dirk Hayhurst has been claimed off waivers by the Toronto Blue Jays.

…As I reported yesterday, Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Brandon Backe had been arrested after an altercation at a Galveston Texas bar. Well he was charged with interfering with a police officer and resisting arrest. He was released on a $1,500 bond.

One coasted on the road and the other did it with a walk-off single but either way they did it the Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox moved on to the American League Championship Series with wins on Monday.  Now, the Rays and Red Sox will continue their ‘08 rivalry that saw a bench-clearing brawl and harsh words back and forth starting Friday.

In Chicago, the Rays’ B.J. Upton hit a first-inning homer and never looked back as Andy Sonnanstine, J.P. Howell and Grant Balfour combined for a four-hitter in their 6-2 series-clinching win over the White Sox.  Upton added a second homer in the third and tacked on two runs in the fourth before the White Sox got on the board with a Paul Konerko solo home run in the bottom of the fourth.  An RBI single by Carlos Pena scored Akinori Iwamura in the fifth and a Jermaine Dye solo shot put the game back to 5-2 at the end of six.  Another RBI single by Pena in the seventh gave the Rays a 6-2 lead and Howell and Balfour retired nine of the last 11 White Sox batters to seal the Rays’ first-ever trip to the ALCS.

In Boston, the Red Sox took one step closer to defending their ‘07 World Series Championship on a walk-off single by Jed Lowrie to score Jason Bay to give them a 3-2 win over the Angels.  The Lowrie single came after a failed squeeze attempt by the Angels and a controversial tag play at third after a rundown when the ball popped out of Jason Varitek’s glove after he hit the ground after tagging out Reggie Willits.  Manager Mike Scioscia argued briefly with Tim Welke and the Angels finished off the top of the ninth still tied 2-2.  Lowrie’s two-out single off of Scot Shields sealed the win and fourth ALCS appearance in six years.

The Rays-Red Sox series starts on Friday at 8:37 PM in Tampa Bay.  The series will be televised on TBS.  Game 2 is scheduled for 8:07 PM on Saturday in Tampa Bay and moves to Boston for Game 3 at 4:37 PM on Monday.  Game 4 is scheduled for 8:07 PM on Tuesday and the Game 5, if necessary, takes place in Boston on Thursday at 8:07 PM.  The final two games are scheduled for Saturday and Sunday in Tampa Bay with Saturday’s game scheduled for 4:37 PM and the seventh and deciding game on Sunday at 8:07 PM.