Baseball

Good starting pitching wins championships. 2009 was a great example of that as the New York Yankees had three top of the line starters with CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Andy Pettitte.

The Yankees are looking to add to that rotation this winter.

We all know they have been negotiating with the agent of John Lackey and have been discussing a possible trade for Roy Halladay.

However, what happens if the Yankees lose out on both Halladay and Lackey?

This is what we will call the "Plan C."

One of the hottest rumors flying around Thursday at baseball's Winter Meetings is that the Boston Red Sox have agreed to trade third baseman Mike Lowell to the Texas Rangers for minor league catcher Max Ramirez.

Lowell, who has dealt with numerous injuries over the past few seasons, is set to make $12 million in 2010, while Ramirez's salary is substantially less; Ramirez made $402,000 last year.

The agent for Barry Bonds —seen here in his current uniform and looking over his shoulder at the wreckage left in his wake—conceded today the playing days of the steroid-tainted slugger are over.

It would appear the fact every team has rebuffed the attempts of Jeff Borris to land Bonds on a Major League roster for the last two years has finally served to open his eyes and allow for reading the message not written, but chiseled, into the wall.

Baseball has no appetite for Barry Lamar Bonds.

The Philadelphia Phillies have been fantastic over the last two years, repeating as National League Champs and winning the World Series in 2008.

The main reason why they have done so well isn’t because of their pitching. It’s because of their three core players in Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, and Ryan Howard.

All four of them have been key parts of the Phillies success since they joined the team.

Going into the offseason Frank Wren had two areas that he needed to address: The bullpen and the lineup.

With the addition of Billy Wagner, Takashi Saito, and Jesse Chavez it would appear that the makeover of the bullpen may finally be complete.

The real question now is who will Bobby Cox be calling for once the starting pitchers finish their job?

The way I see it, assuming the Braves decide to go with seven relievers, as they usually do, there is a major competition to break Spring Training on the Major League roster.

Today, the New York Mets have joined the pursuit for Jason Bay.

It was believed that the Mets had been looking for pitching to relieve some of the pressure off of Johan Santana. General Manager Omar Minaya looks to have changed direction in searching for the left fielder.

The only definitive offer that Bay has currently received is from the Red Sox. The Canadian turned down a four-year deal worth $60 million to stay at Fenway Park.

I learned of the news today in my fourth-period class.

And when I saw it, I scratched my head a bit.

"So, the Braves just traded what likely would've been the second-hottest closer commodity for...Jesse Chavez?"

I'm sure many of you shared the same sentiment.

So, I did what comes natural.

I Googled Jesse Chavez.

This is what I saw: 26 years old, only one sub-three ERA year in the minors (2.22 in 11 appearances a couple of years back), and lots of home runs.

"What's this crap?!?!"

I was a bit perplexed, so I sat back and thought.

New York Yankees' General Manager Brian Cashman appears to be giving the New York Yankees bullpen a face-lift.

Already faced with the uncertainty of whether or or not Phil Hughes and/or Joba Chamberlain will rejoin the starting rotation, Cashman has unloaded relievers Phil Coke and Brian Bruney.