Notebook: White Sox extend catcher Pierzynski

The Chicago White Sox and catcher A.J. Pierzynski agreed to a two-year, $12.5 million contract extension Saturday that will keep him with the team through the 2010 season.

Pierzynski will make a base salary of $5.85 million in 2008 under the final year of a three-year contract he signed in 2005. He will then receive $6.25 million in each of the 2009 and 2010 seasons.

“Both sides agreed on something that was fair. I wasn’t looking to break the bank, and it worked out,” Pierzynski said.

Pierzynski, a standout for the White Sox during their run to the World Series two years ago, is batting .263 with 14 homers and 50 RBIs.

Home, sweet home

Playing at home should always be to a team’s advantage. For the Los Angeles Angels, it’s an absolute necessity.

Heading into the weekend, the Angels had the best home record in baseball at 54-27 – tied for the best in franchise history – but were 38-40 on the road. The team’s batting average at home was .305, the third-highest for an American League team since 1957, compared to .265 on the road. They averaged 5.7 runs at their ballpark, and 4.55 on the road.

They also wanted to avoid traveling to Boston, where they lost five of seven games this season and have dropped 20 of their past 28. Their .401 regular-season winning percentage at Fenway Park is their second lowest of any current stadium in the league. The Angels are 1-4 in the playoffs, going back to Games 6 and 7 of the 1986 A.L. Championship Series.

Their playoff rotation has John Lackey starting Game 1 of the Division Series. He’s 1-4 with a 7.68 ERA in seven career games at Fenway, including 0-2 this season.

Marlins reorganize

Michael Hill was named general manager of the Florida Marlins, replacing Larry Beinfest, who became president of baseball operations.

The Marlins also named Dan Jennings and Jim Fleming as assistant general managers, adding to their roles in the team’s player personnel and development departments. Hill, Beinfest, Jennings and Fleming all accepted extensions, keeping them under contract for at least the next eight seasons.