"He's doing all the baseball drills he normally does as he works to get in shape for spring training," Jeff Borris said in Tuesday's San Jose Mercury News. "His legs are as solid as ever."

Baseball's home-run king is under federal indictment on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice stemming from his testimony in the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative steroids case.

The 43-year-old outfielder was let go by the San Francisco Giants after last season.

Dodgers. Hall of Famer Tommy Lasorda will manage a split squad in eight exhibition games for Los Angeles next month in Florida while manager Joe Torre and another split squad travel to China for a two-game exhibition series against the San Diego Padres.

Lasorda, an 80-year-old Norristown native, managed the Dodgers from 1976 through 1996.

"There is no one else in the game of baseball like Tommy Lasorda," Torre said yesterday. "He's excited about it. I thought it was a great idea. He's such a fan favorite. Knowing his enthusiasm for the game, I know he'll embrace it."

Also, Torre said he had remained in touch with Yankees pitcher Andy Pettitte, whom he managed in New York.

Torre telephoned Pettitte on Monday shortly before the Yankees pitcher spent nearly an hour apologizing for using human growth hormone and answering questions about Roger Clemens at a news conference in Tampa.

Yankees. In his first session with reporters during spring training, Alex Rodriguez talked about baseball's drug-testing program and made a curious statement.

"Last year, I got tested nine to 10 times," Rodriguez said. "We have a very, very strict policy, and I think the game is making tremendous strides."

If Rodriguez was tested that many times, either he was selected for an unusually high number of checks, or he might have been subjected to additional tests - which would happen, for instance, if a player tests positive for a stimulant the first time.

Later in the day, A-Rod said it was just hyperbole.

"My quote from earlier today was taken literally. I was not tested nine or 10 times last year. I was just using exaggeration to make a point," Rodriguez said in a statement through a Yankees spokesman.

Pirates. Free-agent pitcher Byung-Hyun Kim and Pittsburgh agreed to terms on a major-league contract.

The deal, which could earn Kim, 29, more than $1 million in performance bonuses, is pending a physical.

The righthander from South Korea spent 2007 with the Colorado Rockies, Arizona Diamondbacks and Florida Marlins.

Astros. Pitcher Shawn Chacon agreed to a $2 million, one-year contract with Houston.

The 30-year-old righthander split time as a starter and reliever with Pittsburgh in 2007, going 5-4 with a 3.94 ERA and one save in 64 appearances.

Red Sox. Coco Crisp, 28, who lost his center-field job to rookie Jacoby Ellsbury in the postseason, said he probably would talk to Boston about trading him if it appeared he would not get his starting job back.

Not going to Disney. Roger Clemens withdrew from a scheduled appearance at an ESPN event at Disney World in Florida because, he said in a statement, "I believe my current participation could be a distraction," the New York Times reported.

Noteworthy. A minor-league pitcher in the St. Louis Cardinals organization was suspended for the first 50 games of the season after testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug.

Scott Vander Weg, a 25-year-old righthander, was 5-5 with a 4.12 ERA for Palm Beach in the single-A Florida State League last year.