Top News:
Jesse Rogers / ESPN:
Cubs GM: Giving second chance to Addison Russell ‘was the right thing to do’ — CHICAGO — Chicago Cubs ownership on Thursday reasserted its stance that having suspended shortstop Addison Russell under contract for 2019 is not an endorsement of his having violated the league's domestic abuse policy …
Discussion:
Yahoo News and Bleacher Report
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David Haugh / Chicago Tribune:
Column: Can Cubs do more in 2019 by doing less this offseason? Seems unlikely. — Photos of Theo Epstein, the Cubs' president of baseball operations. — Chicago Tribune — In the middle of a Chicago winter, Joe Maddon delivered a cold reality. — “Not going to happen,” …
Mark Gonzales / Chicago Tribune:
Ian Happ excited to be reunited with new Cubs hitting coach Anthony Iapoce: 'He's a really high-energy guy' — The Cubs partnered with Good Sports, a nonprofit that gives kids lifelong benefits of sport and physical activity by providing equipment, apparel and footwear to those most in need on Jan. 17 …
Mark Gonzales / Chicago Tribune:
‘The Cubs got the perfect guy’: Daniel Descalso brings leadership skills and versatility to Wrigley Field
Rick Morrissey / Chicago Sun-Times:
The Cubs have money to sign Bryce Harper, but ownership doesn't want to spend it
Discussion:
baseballmusings.com
Wallace Matthews / New York Daily News:
Adam Ottavino is no splash signing, but this Yankee bullpen is now the best in baseball — From the Bronx Bombers to the Bronx Bullpen. — That is what the Yankees appear to be transitioning into this offseason, a team built more to protect leads than to take them.
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Steve Adams / MLB Trade Rumors:
Yankees To Sign Adam Ottavino — 12:47pm: Fancred's Jon Heyman tweets that Ottavino will be guaranteed $27MM over the three-year term. — 12:42pm :The Yankees have agreed to terms on a contract with free-agent reliever Adam Ottavino, ESPN's Jeff Passan tweets.
Discussion:
NESN.com, CBS New York, Pinstripe Alley, Lone Star Ball and MLB Baseball News …
Steve Adams / MLB Trade Rumors:
Yankees Close To Dealing Sonny Gray — 3:11pm: David O'Brien of The Athletic tweets that any trade of Gray won't include the Braves. There have been no recent discussions between New York and Atlanta, per O'Brien. — 1:51pm: Heyman now tweets that the Yankees are “close” to trading Gray.
Discussion:
NBCSports.com, Lookout Landing and Redleg Nation
Bobby Nightengale / Cincinnati.com:
With an active offseason, Cincinnati Reds players happy to move on from rebuilding stage — Making a guest appearance on WLW's “Hot Stove League” on Wednesday night, one day before the team's annual caravan began, Reds catcher Tucker Barnhart didn't mince words about the last few seasons:
Discussion:
redsminorleagues.com and Redleg Nation
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John Fay / Cincinnati.com:
2019 Cincinnati Reds: Annual caravan to Reds Country rolls with optimism in its wake — The Cincinnati Reds Winter Caravan is an effort to sell the club to the far reaches of Reds Country - places like Huntington, West Virginia; Chillicothe, Ohio; Cynthiana, Kentucky; and Madison, Indiana.
Rick Hummel / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
Hernandez's star was rising 40 years ago with Cards — In the past 50 years, only four Cardinals players have hit double figures in doubles, triples, home runs and stolen bases in the same season. By the way, that would have been an impossibility in 2018 because the entire team didn't have double figures in triples (nine).
John Harper / SNY:
Why Mets making Cubs castoff Chili Davis hitting coach shouldn't cause alarm — Cubs president Theo Epstein didn't really want to fire Davis, according to multiple sources — Curious as to why the Mets hired a hitting coach, Chili Davis, who lasted all of one year with the Cubs?
Discussion:
MLB Baseball News …, Cubs Insider, Bleacher Nation and Chicago Sun-Times
ESPN:
Red Sox unlikely to spend big to sign closer, Dave Dombrowski says — While the New York Yankees made another move to strengthen their bullpen, Boston Red Sox president Dave Dombrowski said Thursday he didn't expect to spend a lot of money on a closer. — Dombrowski, speaking …
Discussion:
MLB Baseball News …
Mark Gonzales / Chicago Tribune:
White Sox to televise six spring training games — Chicago Tribune — The White Sox will televise six spring training games, the team announced Thursday. — Five of those games will be carried by NBC Sports Chicago and one by WGN-Ch. 9. In addition, 11 game webcasts will be shown on the team's website.
Derrick Goold / St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
Still only 18, Gorman headlines Cardinals' strong group of third-base prospects — A total of 43 players were invited to the Cardinals' minor-league instructional camp in Jupiter, Fla., and that list includes the club's three most-recent top draft choices: shortstop Delvin Perez (2016) …
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