Baseball

On Thursday, the Kansas City Royals released first baseman Mike Jacobs.

Should the Chicago Cubs give Jacobs a call?

There are a couple reasons Jacobs intrigues me as a free agent, the biggest of which is that he would bring something the Cubs' bench currently lacks: power.

It’s the night of the Non-Tendered, a scary, Halloween-like time when perfectly healthy baseball players are culled and cut from the body that loved and nurtured them.

It’s the baseball version of “The Night of the Living Dead."

This is when it sets in.  Same time every year.  The leaves fall.  The skies turn cold and grey.  The winds of November whip across the Great Lakes.  And baseball fanatics …the kind that subscribe to the Sporting News , play fantasy baseball and always read the line scores….go into withdrawal mode.

With the arbitration deadline set for 8:59pm PST, the San Diego Padres are going to try and work out a deal with right hander Kevin Correia.

If they're unable to do that, according to MLB.com's Corey Brock, the Padres will attempt to trade him instead of letting him go for nothing. Problem with that notion is, why would any team trade for Correia if they know they can sign him without giving up another player?

This year, we had a replay of the 1950 classic, the last time the Phillies and Yankees met for the World Championship, with both teams showing off their shiny new ballparks. 

With the winter meetings over and the Phillies' bench restocked, fans have turned their attention to Ruben Amaro Jr.'s non-attempts to trade for Toronto's Roy Halladay. What was once an exercise in prospect roulette may have taken a turn towards blockbuster.

In general, baseball players tend to be smarter than their counterparts in other major sports.

Maybe it's that even the best players spend at least a couple years maturing in the minors before they hit the big show.

Major League Baseball's reigning home run king has hung up his bat, glove, and creams. Although the MLB recognizes him as the record holder, I don't. Roger Maris still holds that record. Until someone off the juice breaks it, that's the "real" king. Sorry A-Rod, I wish it was different. It would have been you...

Jim Thome is one of my favorite players ever, certainly current players withstanding.

It is painful to see his apparent value diminish to a pinch hitter's role with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Thome loves Chicago, considers it home, and would love to come back to the White Sox. They would like to have the slugger back. White Sox GM Ken Williams has not discounted the idea of re-signing Thome, after having traded him to the Dodgers for their playoff run in 2009.