Manny Machado, Bryce Harper are staring at same money decision  —  This is the quiet time in baseball.  In a sport that has become a 52-week-a-year endeavor, this is the one time when many offices go dark and executives try to play catchup with rest and family.

The Year That ... : What we'd bet baseball in 2018 will be remembered for forever  —  What you know about 1918: the flu pandemic, the end of World War I, and the Boston Red Sox winning their final World Series of the century.  —  The last one wouldn't have seemed historic to the average human in 1918.

Cards newcomer Robinson is a man of many gloves  —  As a kid in Las Vegas chasing playing time wherever he could find it, Drew Robinson had to learn to play almost every position because of the one position he was least likely to play.  —  Athletic but “undersized” compared to his peers in youth baseball …

Twins To Sign Nelson Cruz  —  The Twins are in agreement on a contract with free-agent slugger Nelson Cruz, reports Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter).  It's a one-year deal with an option for a second season, according to Fancred's Jon Heyman (on Twitter).

Five key stats for hitters on the 2019 Hall of Fame ballot  —  As you dig out from the post-Christmas pile of pine needles and wrapping paper, baseball writers are scrambling to mail their votes by the Dec. 31 deadline to help elect the 2019 class to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Tommy Pham: Rays need a new stadium or a new city  —  Rays outfielder Tommy Pham said he missed playing in front of the fans of St. Louis and lamented the poor fan support he's seen since coming to Tampa Bay.  —  ST. PETERSBURG — Rays outfielder Tommy Pham said Thursday he thinks the team needs a new stadium or a new city.

Yasiel Puig: ‘Merry Christmas!’ response to Cincinnati Reds fan opening photo as present  —  Cincinnati Reds outfielder Yasiel Puig appreciated a short video posted on Twitter of a Reds fan opening a present with Puig's photo - in which he's wearing a Reds cap - enough to Retweet it along with “Merry Christmas!” wishes.

Quick Hits: Goold on the Cardinals  —  Rounding up the hot topics from baseball writer Derrick Goold's weekly chat with St. Louis baseball fans.  —  Tags  —  As featured on  —  The bad teams routinely lose 100 games and contenders must shoot for 100 wins.  The gap is massive, and so-so teams tumble deep into the void.

Terry Pendleton to join Braves Hall of Fame  —  Long-time Brave Terry Pendleton will join the team's Hall of Fame next month.  —  Pendleton and Hugh Duffy, an outfielder who played mostly in the 19th century, will join 33 others in the Braves Hall during the Chop Fest Gala on Jan. 18 at the Coca-Cola Roxy within The Battery Atlanta.

Captaincy was everything to David Wright, but now baseball seems to be abandoning it  —  Over the course of 14 big-league seasons, David Wright was an All-Star seven times, a two-time Gold Glove winner and played in two National League Championship Series and one World Series.