Reds sign Burke to Minor League deal

Although the Reds may not have made any major moves during the Winter Meetings in Indianapolis, they did sign Chris Burke to a Minor League deal, general manager Walt Jocketty said last week. Burke, who is a former first-round pick by the Astros in the 2001 First-Year Player Draft, played in 32 games for the Padres in 2009 and also played in the Mariners' and Braves' Triple-A affiliates. In 83 Minor League games, the right-handed hitter .279 with four homers and 15 stolen bases.

In six seasons in the Majors, he has also played center field, shortstop, right field, first base and third base in his mlb jersey. "I think we see him as a potential candidate for the utility role on the Major League club, and if nothing else, he'll play at Triple-A Louisville," Jocketty said. "He's from Louisville, it's his hometown, and he's very excited about the possibility to play for either club. He's an experienced guy that might be able to help us."

Mets ink Dessens to Minors deal

The Associated Press reported that reliever Elmer Dessens will remain with the Mets since the right-hander agreed to a Minor League contract last week. This contract will pay him $700,000 if he is in the Majors and $90,000 if he is in the Minors3. He can also earn $150,000 in bonuses.

The veteran made 28 relief appearances with the Mets last season, posting a 3.31 ERA with 14 strikeouts in 32 2/3 innings in his mets jersey. In his career, Dessens has played with the Pirates, Reds, D-backs, Dodgers, Royals, Brewers, Rockies, Braves and Mets.

Chipper will miss a few more games

The Braves managed to win several games without Chipper Jones in their lineup this weekend in St. Louis, and they may spend a few more days without their veteran third baseman.

Jones missed Tuesday night's series opener against the New York Mets with the strained left groin which he suffered during the ninth inning of Saturday's game against the Cardinals. When he played with approximately 50-60 percent effort on Tuesday afternoon, he still felt uncomfortable. "When I can get it to 75-80 percent and just kind of temper it, I'll get back in there," Jones said. He also said it is hopeful that he will be able to return to the Braves' lineup within the next few days. We look forward to seeing him playing on the field in his baseball jersey again.

Glaus was sidelined by strained muscle

After suffering a strained left muscle in Saturday's game against the Braves, Troy Glaus was still in serious pain on Monday. Obviously Glaus was unavailable both the two days, and he will probably continue to be out of service for the future. If he had become much better, he would have started in Monday's win over Florida.

Generally a shot keeps a player out of action for two or three days, thus it's difficult to image Glaus playing before the weekend. It has been an extremely frustrating year for Glaus. He underwent shoulder surgery shortly before Spring Training's beginning, and the rehabilitation took him well into the second half of the season. Then, after he began playing Minor League rehabilitation games, the back spasms suffered him a lot once again. He has made 18 Major League plate appearances with six strikeouts this year.