Top News:
ESPN:
Transparency will make HOF voting a whole new game — It's one of the most historic Hall of Fame elections of all time. And there's an excellent chance that no one has told you why. — The funny thing is this history has nothing to do with who gets elected Wednesday …
RELATED:
Ben Frederickson / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
Winter Warm-Up: Grichuk back to speed after offseason knee surgery — Photo by Chris Lee, clee@post-dispatch.com … Cardinals outfielder Randal Grichuk need a little more than a month to recover from knee surgery he had at the end of the 2016 season to address soreness and inflammation that followed him throughout the summer.
Discussion:
Viva El Birdos
RELATED:
Derrick Goold / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
Cards appear intent on taking Martinez, Wacha to arbitration hearing
Cards appear intent on taking Martinez, Wacha to arbitration hearing
Discussion:
South Side Sox
Steve Adams / MLB Trade Rumors:
Diamondbacks, Gregor Blanco Agree To Minors Deal — Longtime Giants outfielder Gregor Blanco has agreed to a minor league contract with an invitation to Major League Spring Training, Blanco's agent, Wil Polidor, tells Manolo Hernandez of BeisbolPorGotas.com (Twitter link).
Discussion:
MLB Daily Dish and AZ Snake Pit
RELATED:
Jeff Todd / MLB Trade Rumors:
Tigers “In Touch” With Peter Bourjos, Gregor Blanco — The Tigers have opened a dialogue with free-agent outfielders Peter Bourjos and Gregor Blanco, according to Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter links). There's no agreement close with either player, but the two are under consideration …
Discussion:
FanRag Sports and Bless You Boys
Jeff Todd / MLB Trade Rumors:
Blue Jays To Re-Sign Jose Bautista — 3:45pm: Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reports that Bautista's 2017 salary will be $18MM, but the buyout on the second-year option will tack another $500K to $1MM onto the overall guarantee (Twitter links). Bautista will have mutual option for the 2018 season …
Discussion:
Yahoo Sports, MLB Daily Dish, Bluebird Banter and Bleacher Nation
RELATED:
Marc Topkin / Tampa Bay Times:
Rays adding to bullpen, close to signing Shawn Tolleson — The Rays are making a move to bolster their bullpen as they are close to finalizing a deal with RHP Shawn Tolleson, the Tampa Bay Times has learned. — Tolleson, 29 on Thursday, saved 35 games for the Rangers in 2015 but struggled through …
Discussion:
MLB Trade Rumors and DRaysBay
Dennis Lin / sandiegouniontribune.com:
Padres sign Wil Myers to six-year, $83 million extension — The Padres' Wil Myers signs autographs for fans before the start of the All-Star Game at Petco Park. (Hayne Palmour IV/San Diego Union-Tribune) — Wil Myers and the Padres have reached the finish line on the largest contract in franchise history.
Discussion:
baseballmusings.com and Yahoo Sports
Lindsey Foltin / Fox Sports:
Brother of MLB pitcher Edinson Volquez reportedly stabbed to death — The brother of Miami Marlins pitcher Edinson Volquez was stabbed to death in the Dominican Republic, according to a report by Quisqueyanos En Los Deportes. — Brandy Volquez died after being stabbed in a Santo Domingo barber shop.
Discussion:
baseballmusings.com
Carrie Muskat / MLB.com:
Fans get up-close look at trophy, continue title celebration — CHICAGO — The buzz at the Cubs Convention on Friday seemed louder and livelier than in years past, as fans were eager to celebrate the World Series championship, the first for the franchise in 108 years.
Discussion:
Bleacher Nation, Bleed Cubbie Blue, CBS Chicago, Yahoo Sports and WDTN-TV
Steve Adams / MLB Trade Rumors:
Royals Extend Danny Duffy — The Royals have a number of key players hitting the open market next winter, but left-hander Danny Duffy will no longer be among them. The Royals announced on Monday that they've signed Duffy to a five-year deal that runs through the 2021 season and will reportedly guarantee him $65MM.
Discussion:
FanGraphs Baseball, Lone Star Ball, MLB Daily Dish, Yahoo Sports and Royals Review
David Kagan / The Hardball Times:
The Physics of Barreled Balls — I guess I wasn't paying attention because back in September 2016 Mike Petriello wrote that Statcast debuted a new metric called “Barreled Balls.” According to MLB's Statcast Glossary, the barreled ball designation is assigned to balls with specific exit velocities …
Jeff Todd / MLB Trade Rumors:
Jake Diekman To Undergo Surgery, Miss Significant Portion Of 2017 Season — Rangers reliever Jake Diekman is expected to miss “at least half” of the 2017 season after undergoing surgery to “help alleviate ulcerative colitis,” according to Jeff Wilson of the Forth Worth Star-Telegram (via Twitter).
Discussion:
Yahoo Sports and FanRag Sports
Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
Braves zero in on Sarasota County for spring training — The Braves may have finally found their new spring-training site. — Officials in Sarasota County, Fla., announced today that the Braves have entered into exclusive negotiations with the county and its partners at the West Villages development …
Discussion:
Talking Chop