Touch 'Em All: Giants release infielder Fontenot

If anybody knows of a team - maybe, say, one that plays around here - looking for help in the infield - say, second and/or third base - let them know the San Francsico Giants have released infielder Mike Fontenot.

Fontenot is 31, and was hitting .278 in 13 games this spring. It looks like a money move for the Giants, since it comes just before his contract was about to become fully guaranteed, and now they just owe him a quarter of it.

Phillies fans may remember the career .263 hitter as the guy who filled in for Pablo Sandoval at third for two games in the 2010 NLCS and went 2 for 8 with a walk and stolen base.

OK, last season he hit .227, but the year before he batted .283 in a split with San Francisco and the Cubs. He's just four seasons removed from hitting .305. Got to figure it's worth seeing if he's got something left in the tank - right, Phillies fans? For some team with infield needs, we mean.

How was your Friday? Here's how it went for Livan Hernandez: After giving up eight runs - four earned - on seven hits (including a grand slam by the 2.0 model David Wright) in 32/3 innings in a 9-1 Astros loss to the Mets Thursday night, he was released by Houston at noon.

After a 15-mile trip to Atlanta's complex in Kissimmee, Fla., the righthander signed a one-year deal with the Braves.

A Broward County prosecutor has dismissed a misdemeanor domestic battery charge in Florida against erstwhile Oakland Athletics outfielder Manny Ramirez because his wife, the alleged victim, won't cooperate in the investigation.

Ramirez, who must sit out the first 50 games this season because of a violation of MLB drug policy, had pleaded not guilty to slapping his wife, Juliana Ramirez, in the Sept. 12 incident, in which she said her head struck a bed headboard.

Miami's Mark Buehrle, who pitched for Ozzie Guillen with the Chicago White Sox, gave a tutorial on the loquacious new Marlins skipper for teammates.

"When he's talking to you, you kind of laugh and giggle," Buehrle said. "And when he turns around and walks away, you look at everybody and say, 'Does anybody understand what he said?' "

That's why we love Ozzie.

Kyle Lohse scattered three hits in six innings and singled in a run in the St. Louis Cardinals' 4-3 win over the New York Mets Friday. He was also hit in the hand by Omar Quintanilla in the third and given an error on the play. Lohse said he was OK, after the tingling in his fingers went away.

Cleveland righthander Derek Lowe, 38, who left his Thursday start for the Indians after three innings, speaking about his back problems:

"My whole right side was not my friend, yesterday. [But] there was no sharp pain. I'm a durable cat."

And we have a new motto.