Frank Robinson Angered; Sandoval, Yankees Dropping Dead Weight

Hijacked from ESPN's Truth and Rumors column (link insider only), here's three noteworthy posts:

• Torre overtures irk Robinson: Commissioner Bud Selig confirmed last week that he is actively involved in discussions with former Los Angeles Dodgers manager Joe Torre about a front office position, a job that has been widely reported to be that of vice president of baseball operations.

  That apparently isn't sitting well with Hall of Famer Frank Robinson, who is currently serving as an overseer of the umpires situation at the behest of Selig. Bill Madden reports that Robinson is livid with Selig's overtures to Torre and the fact that he was not approached about the job.

You can't please all of the people all of the time.

• It is mid-January, time to check in as to whether the Giants' Pablo Sandoval is winning his annual Battle of the Bulge. The Giants want Sandoval to control his weight, and the San Francisco Chronicle reports there is evidence on Twitter that the Kung Fu Panda has indeed shed many pounds.

Don't be fooled. That's a wide-angle lens.

• Once the New York Yankees landed reliever Rafael Soriano, the future of Joba Chamberlain quickly became a hot topic.

  A report in Saturday's New York Daily News says Hal and Hank Steinbrenners were bothered by GM Brian Cashman's plan to use Chamberlain as the primary set-up man for Mariano Rivera and made the deal for Soriano.

  Could Chamberlain be traded? According to Brian Costello of the New York Post, the Yankees have no plans of trading Chamberlain right now, but they would listen to offers.

The Dodgers want to trade Darren Dreifort, too.