Breaking News

Former Baltimore Orioles center fielder Paul Blair passed away on Thursday, Dec. 26 at the age of 69.

Blair passed away at Sinai Hospital, according to a hospital spokeswoman (via the Associated Press).

After weeks of speculation and rumors regarding the future of starting pitcher Masahiro Tanaka, the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of the Japanese Pacific League have officially decided to post him for bids from teams in Major League Baseball.

Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times was able to translate the announcement from Sankei Sports:

Closer Addison Reed and third baseman Matt Davidson were recently traded for each other, via MLB.com's Steve Gilbert.

The Los Angeles Dodgers haven't made a major offseason splash that many expected them to so far this offseason, but their latest move should help solidify one of their few roster shortcomings. 

Updates from Tuesday, Dec. 24

The Dodgers made the deal official via Twitter:

As was reported earlier today by Bob Nightengale of USA Today, free-agent outfielder Shin-Soo Choo has agreed to sign a seven-year, $130 million deal with the Texas Rangers.

The Texas Rangers will have a big boost to their offense in 2014 after reportedly signing Shin-Soo Choo to a seven-year, $130 million contract. 

Jon Heyman of CBS Sports first reported the deal:

Shin-Soo Choo has deal with rangers. 7 years. details to come.

After trading away closer Jim Johnson in early December, the Baltimore Orioles locked in on free agent Grant Balfour as their ideal replacement.

Grant Balfour appeared set to join the Baltimore Orioles this offseason, but a problem with the physical has caused the deal to fall through.

Kevin Youkilis is heading to Japan to continue his baseball career. The veteran infielder has reportedly reached an agreement with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles for the 2014 season.

He may not have been their first choice, but signing Fernando Rodney would be a good use of money for the Baltimore Orioles.