I take a break from politics in this week's Phoenix to report on the state's largest amateur baseball league - the Rhode Island Men's Senior Baseball League.

Standing on the sidelines with the Dodgers, a better than average team in the league's 22-plus age division, was something of a revelation. Baseball doesn't have to end in high school or college.

What's worse -- A-Rod's spinning, or that some current and former ballplayers, including MLB.com's Harold Reynolds, are praising him as some kind of stand-up guy for acknowledging his use of a performance-enhancing substance and vowing to work with kids?

Speaking last night on MLB, Derek Jeter groused about how the list that revealed A-Rod's bad behavior was supposed to be confidential.

I yesterday overlooked how John Updike wrote one of my favorite pieces of magazine journalism, a reflection of his versatility and his adoption of New England.

We speak of the New Yorker classic Hub fans bid Kid adieu:

Fenway Park, in Boston, is a lyric little bandbox of a ballpark. Everything is painted green and seems in curiously sharp focus, like the inside of an old-fashioned peeping-type Easter egg.

Far more interesting than ProJo sports columnist Jim Donaldson's assertion today that Jim Rice is not "a real Hall of Famer" (his italics) are some of the responses from readers on projo.com. Donaldson's point is that Jim Ed was "borderline," not a top-notch hardball luminary in the style of Babe Ruth or Ty Cobb.

UPDATE: He's in!

Rice, the fierce and feared slugger who spent his entire 16-year major league career with the Red Sox, was at last elected to to the Baseball Hall of Fame this afternoon on his 15th -- and final -- season on the Baseball Writers Association of America ballot. Rice was named on 76.4 percent of the ballots.

Even in sports:

Spark Of Humanity Fades From Mark Teixeira's Eyes After Signing With Yankees

January 8, 2009 | Onion Sports

Just as money and message are two cornerstones of a successful political campaign, health and performance go a long way in powering a sucessful baseball team.

Translation: If David Ortiz and Mike Lowell have good seasons, the Sox could go deep into the post-season, in part because of stacked starting pitching: Beckett; Lester; Dice-K; Penny; Smoltz; Wakefield.

Much of the reporting immediately after word broke that Mark Teixeira would sign with the Yankees treated this development as a hard-to-figure and unexplainable mystery.

In fact, there were many clues -- such as how Teixeira grew up revering Don Mattingly, and how he'd previously had a bad encounter with the Sox -- that he'd sign with the Evils.

Dan Barbarisi today sketches the fundamental problem with the Sox' attempt to retain Jason Varitek: Tek (and Scott Boras) want way too much money.

It's just coincidence, but some of the potential replacements -- Jarrod "Salty" Saltalamacchia and Taylor Hill Teagarden -- have among the best names in baseball.

What better way to start the New Year than with a new cable station dedicated 24/7 to baseball? Hell, the debut this evening of the MLB Network even signifies the return of Hazel Mae. Sounds good.

During the run-up in recent weeks, MLB Network has been repeatedly screening highlights from the 2004 post-season -- catnip for N4N.

There were points this year when it felt as if the Sox needed another big bat in their lineup. Considering that, Mark Teixeria seemed like a perfect target, the kind of player around whom the offense could be built for years to come. Now, of course, he's a Yankee.

The immediate reaction to this development yesterday afternoon was one of bewilderment.

Washington Times via Dirt Dogs:

A major league baseball source has told The Washington Times' Thom Loverro that there will be an announcement today regarding the future of free agent first baseman Mark Teixeira.

While the source declined to discuss specifics, there are strong indications that the Red Sox will announce that they have landed the highly-coveted slugger, who has been courted this off-season by several major league clubs, including the Angels, Orioles and Nationals.