AL Central

The Minnesota Twins are near finalizing a contract with second baseman Tsuyoshi Nishioka, formerly of the Japanese League's Chiba Lotte Marines, according to reports. Nishioka becomes the overwhelming favorite to start at second base for Minnesota in 2011, and his arrival likely signals the end of Orlando Hudson's brief tenure in the Twin Cities.

Major League Baseball lost one of its special people Wednesday night. 

Bob Feller lost his fight with Leukemia and has left the baseball world in mourning.  Feller was not only one of the all-time greatest pitchers, but a great man as well.

Bob Feller, one of the greatest pitchers in major league history and a true icon in Cleveland sports, has passed away.

The 92-year-old was diagnosed with leukemia in August and underwent several additional health problems before moving to a hospice and passing away last night.

"Bob Feller is gone. We cannot be surprised," said Indians owner Larry Dolan. "Yet, it seems improbable. Bob has been such an integral part of our fabric, so much more than an ex-ballplayer, so much more than any Cleveland Indians player. He is Cleveland, Ohio.

You know how people say a picture paints a thousand words? Well when you're talking about Bob Feller, a thousands words is not nearly enough.

Robert "Bob" Feller was born in Van Meter, Iowa on November 3, 1918. He was never the smartest or most athletic but what he did have was a hard-working, farm-boy mentality, and his father who taught him everything in "life lessons." In 1931 his father built him a baseball field in which Feller called "Field of Dreams," and credits where he first learned to play baseball.

According to MLB sources, the White Sox have agreed to a three-year deal with 29-year-old right-hander Jesse Crain.

Crain sported a 3.04 ERA and 1.18 WHIP, walking 27 and striking out 62 in 68 innings of setup duty for division rival Minnesota Twins last season.

In each of his last four seasons, Crain has increased the velocity of his fastball going from 93.9 miles per hour in 2007 to 94.1 in 2008, 94.3 in 2009 and a career-high of 94.8 in 2010.

I have always had one major concern with Shin-Soo Choo and that was his average.  Those concerns came courtesy of a consistently elevated BABIP, but back-to-back 20/20 seasons certainly help to assuage these concerns.  It’s hard not to like an outfielder who posted the following numbers in 2010:

There's something strangely fitting that former Tribe starter Bartolo Colon is rumored to be a potential free-agent target for the Indians during the 2010-2011 hot stove season. 

No, I'm not talking about Colon now "fitting" into his old Tribe jersey now that he's allegedly lost 50 pounds, I'm talking about how he could fit on this team as a relevant starter.  Seriously, I know you all are chuckling.

Now that the winner of the Cliff Lee sweepstakes has been decided, the attention can turn to the rest of the free agent market. Carl Pavano is now the best free agent starting pitcher on the open market, and with Lee making a surprise move in returning to Philadelphia, teams have been left scrambling.

Zack Greinke trade rumors have kicked up a few notches over the last 12 hours after reports surfaced that prized free agent Cliff Lee signed with the Philadelphia Phillies.

Lee's decision to sign with the Phillies over a larger offer from the New York Yankees and extreme interest from the Texas Rangers all but shocked the baseball world.

Lee joins Roy Halladay, Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels in what will be perhaps the top starting rotation in all of baseball.

Zack Greinke's tenure with the Kansas City Royals could very well be coming to an abrupt end this week. 

Although two years still remain on the 2009 AL Cy Young's contract, the Royals are trying to maximize his value by trading him now. They are of course counting on the fact that they likely won't be competing for a playoff spot anytime soon.