Passan: Why the baseball world is waiting on Manny and Bryce  —  In November 2017, when baseball free agency ground to an unexpected halt, teams claimed that there was no nefariousness to the industry's sudden sheepishness in signing players.  They were simply waiting for Shohei Ohtani to pick …

Sources: Free-agent lefty Yusei Kikuchi agrees with Mariners  —  Japanese left-hander Yusei Kikuchi agreed to a deal with the Seattle Mariners late Monday night, delivering a New Year's surprise for a team that has traded a number of foundational pieces already this winter, league sources familiar with the deal told ESPN.

After acquiring Clayton Richard, health issues a concern for Blue Jays starters  —  Blue Jays GM Ross Atkins was at downtown Toronto's Kensington Market on Monday, no doubt shopping for something other than a recently banged-up starting pitcher.  —  When you break down the Jays' rotation as it stands now …

The five best trade fits for Corey Kluber  —  As the calendar turns to 2019, rumors of a Corey Kluber trade continue.  A series of money-saving moves saw Yan Gomes, Yonder Alonso, Yandy Diaz, and Edwin Encarnacion traded from a division winner with Carlos Santana and Jake Bauers the principal returns.

Pirates Sign Left-Handed Pitcher Tyler Lyons  —  The Pittsburgh Pirates have signed 30-year-old left-handed pitcher Tyler Lyons to a minor league deal.  Lyons spent part of 2018 with the St Louis Cardinals, posting an 8.64 ERA in 16.2 innings over 27 appearances.

Report: Free-agent pitcher Derek Holland says Cincinnati Reds have been in contact  —  Free-agent pitcher Derek Holland told MLB Network Radio that the Cincinnati Reds have contacted him during this offseason, according to a report via Twitter from MLB Network's Jon Morosi.

Brodie Van Wagenen now needs to finish what he started for Mets … The Mets' December to remember served as a solid start to this offseason, but now what about January?  —  After adding Robinson Cano, Edwin Diaz, Jeurys Familia and Wilson Ramos in a flurry following his arrival as general manager …

The Strangest But Truest Feats of 2018 — bizarre injuries, time-traveling rookies, once-in-a lifetime box score phenomena and much, much more  —  So what was so Strange But True about baseball in the year 2018?  —  Well, a guy got hurt taking off his pants! ...  And another guy debuted before his debut! ...

Braves popular in Baseball America's ‘best tools’ poll  —  The Braves fared well in Baseball America's annual “best tools” poll, which consists of votes from managers, scouts and executives to rank players based on specific abilities following the 2018 season.