Tonight on The Baseball Show, co-host Clint Evans of Diamond Hoggers and I have a relatively short show. As always, we bring the solid and hardcore baseball talk for your enjoyment.

Topics of discussion:
–Jayson Werth‘s new contract
-Thoughts on Cliff Lee
-My thoughts on the White Sox offering Gordon Beckham for Adrian Gonzalez
-Reaction to the Prince Fielder rumors
-Who is the safest man in baseball (in terms of being traded)?
-Have we seen the last of Garry Sheffield and Manny Ramirez?

When Dad and I woke up for the final day of the Four Ballparks, Four Cities, Four Days trip, we realized immediately that we had some serious ground to cover.  Although we could walk to Ballpark #3 from our Los Angeles Hilton, it was located a full 375 miles from Ballpark #4—Chase Field in beautiful downtown Phoenix, Arizona.

So off we went into the desert, our trusty Toyota Corolla pointed directly toward The City that Sleeps at 7PM.  I wasn’t sure what to expect in the six-hour drive, save for a colleague’s admonition from before I left the office—make sure your air conditioning works.  At first I wasn’t sure how seriously I needed to take this on a beautiful 80-degree day in Los Angeles.  However, as we drove deeper into the desert, the temperature steadily climbed into the 90’s before finally cracking the triple digits.  Before we crossed the Arizona state line, the Corolla’s thermometer read 105, which (not coincidentally I am certain) represented a higher number than the populations of several towns we passed along the way.

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• On Tuesday, the Atlanta Braves declined to offer arbitration to both Troy Glaus and Derrek Lee, indicating that prospect Freddie Freeman will get the nod at first base in 2011.

• Last week the Florida Marlins traded Dan Uggla to the Atlanta Braves for infielder Omar Infante and relief pitcher Mike Dunn.   Two of our writers, Griff and Dee, actually played with and against him in high school.  Marlin Maniac offers a scouting report and projection for the left-hander.

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In his first televised professional at-bat, 18-year old Bryce Harper ripped an RBI single to put the Scottsdale Scorpions ahead 2-1, in the Arizona Fall League Championship.  Harper came to the plate in the bottom of the second inning with one out and Diamondbacks outfielder Marc Krauss on second base.  Harper got straight to business, ripping Kyle Greenwalt’s first pitch fastball past an outstretched Jose Iglesias at shortstop.

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The Golden Sombrero presents Rookie Card Corner: Bryce Harper 2010 Bowman Chrome

Fun Fact: Harper said he chose to wear #34 because “I always loved Mickey Mantle, three and four equals seven.”