Baseball: Roundup

Omar Vizquel will wear Luis Aparicio's 11 with White Sox

Associated Press

Chicago -- The Chicago White Sox are taking Hall of Famer Luis Aparicio's number 11 out of retirement for newly acquired 11-time Gold Glove winner Omar Vizquel.

A Venezuelan like Aparicio, Vizquel will wear the number as a tribute to his countryman.

"For me, it's like a huge celebration, trying to keep his name alive and trying to spread the word of Venezuelan shortstops," Vizquel said Monday during a conference call. "I think every kid now -- the new generation of shortstops in Venezuela -- has to know about Luis Aparicio and everything that he means to us in this game."

Aparicio said if there's one player he'd like to see wear his number, it's Vizquel, the leader among shortstops in games (2,681) and a three-time AL All-Star.

"I have known Omar for a long time," the 10-time All-Star shortstop and nine-time Gold Glove winner said in a statement. "Along with being an outstanding player, he is a good and decent man."

The 1956 AL Rookie of the Year with the White Sox, Aparicio was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1984 -- the year his number was retired.

This is not the first time the White Sox have taken a number out of retirement. They gave Harold Baines his old number 3 when he returned to the team in 1996 and did it again in 2000 when he came back for his third and final stint as a player. It was initially retired in 1989.

Vizquel has worn 13, but in Chicago, that number belongs to manager Ozzie Guillen. And he wasn't about to relinquish it.

"Ever since I signed with the White Sox, the first thing Ozzie Guillen said (was): 'You can forget about 13, that's going to be my number,'" Vizquel said. "He knows that's my number and I really would love to wear it. But I think what Ozzie Guillen has done for the Chicago White Sox, winning them a championship and all the years that he played there, No. 13 already has a name. ... As long as a Venezuelan is wearing it, I'm pretty happy with it."

Winn signs with Yankees

Randy Winn and the New York Yankees have finalized a $1.1 million, one-year contract.

The outfielder can earn an additional $900,000 in performance bonuses based on plate appearances against left-handed pitchers. He would get $100,000 each for 50, 75 and 100, and $150,000 apiece for 125, 150, 175 and 200.

The deal, reached Jan. 27 subject to a physical, pretty much eliminated any chance Johnny Damon had of returning to the World Series champions.

Winn, who figures to share playing time in left field with Brett Gardner , hit .262 with two homers and 51 RBIs for San Francisco last season. The 35-year-old was an All-Star in 2002, when he batted .298 with 14 homers and 75 RBIs for Tampa Bay.

Mets hire Melvin as scout

Former major league manager Bob Melvin has been hired as a professional scout by the New York Mets, who also brought back Mookie Wilson as their minor league outfield and base running coordinator.

Melvin was the NL Manager of the Year in 2007 with Arizona. He managed the Seattle Mariners from 2003-04 and then the Diamondbacks from 2005 until he was fired last May 8 and replaced by A.J. Hinch .

Wilson, a member of the Mets' 1986 World Series championship team, was their first base coach from 1997-02 and a minor league manager for New York at Kingsport (2003-04) and Brooklyn (2005).

Guy Conti was replaced as rehabilitation pitching coordinator by Frank Fultz , and Conti becomes a senior adviser in the minor league department. Fultz was pitching coach for the Gulf Coast Mets last year.

Brewers will unveil Selig statue

The Brewers are erecting a statue of baseball commissioner Bud Selig outside Miller Park and will unveil it on Aug. 24.

Selig headed a group that bought the Seattle Pilots in bankruptcy court in 1970, moved the franchise to Milwaukee and renamed it the Brewers. He became acting commissioner in 1992 and took the job full-time six years later, turning control of the team over to his daughter, Wendy Selig-Prieb . The Selig family sold the team to a group headed by Mark Attanasio in 2005.

"The Brewers and Miller Park are in this city because of the commissioner's vision and dedicated efforts," Attanasio said Monday.

Selig's foundation donated statues of Hank Aaron and Robin Yount that were unveiled when Miller Park opened in 2001. Selig's statue, which will be more than 7 feet tall, will be built by the same designer, Brian Maughan .