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The St. Louis Cardinals made their first move toward upgrading their offense on Tuesday, trading right-hander Blake Hawksworth to the Los Angeles Dodgers for shortstop Ryan Theriot.

Theriot became expendable earlier this week when Los Angeles signed Juan Uribe, who can play multiple infield positions like Theriot, but has a little more pop.

It would be interesting to know what Derek Jeter thinks of today's news with Troy Tulowitzki.

The Colorado Rockies' All-Star shortstop is reportedly set to sign a seven-year, $134 million extension through the 2020 season, according to the Denver Post.

Tulowitzki, 26, has already distinguished himself as one of the game's bright young talents. He was second in the 2007 National League Rookie of the Year balloting, with a .291 average, 24 home runs and 99 RBI. Last season, he hit .315 in 122 games, and also won his first Gold Glove award.

The Red Sox are kicking the proverbial tires on veteran backstop Rod Barajas, according to FoxSports.com's Jon Paul Morosi and MLBTradeRumors.com.

While the Red Sox reportedly made a bid to retain Victor Martinez behind the dish for at least the next couple seasons, they lost him to a more aggressive Detroit Tigers' organization early last Wednesday.

Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal has reported via Twitter that former San Francisco Giant infielder Juan Uribe has signed a three-year deal worth $21 million with the Los Angles Dodgers.

This is a nice deal for Uribe, 31, who batted .248 with 24 home runs and 85 runs batted in. The Dodgers will get some pop with Uribe's bat and will certainly get experience. Uribe's bat will boost the Dodger's lineup and his glove will improve the Dodger' infield— as he will probably play a lot of second base.

The Los Angeles Dodgers stayed busy Monday, as they appear to have secured the services of free-agent infielder Juan Uribe for the next three seasons at a cost of roughly $21 million.

Uribe helped lead the charge for the World Series champion San Francisco Giants in 2010, belting 24 home runs and playing three infield positions well defensively.

Uribe's loss makes the Giants' quest to add a shortstop even more urgent, and it likely spells the end for Ryan Theriot (a fellow middle infielder who was a serious candidate to be non-tendered this winter anyway) in Dodger blue.

Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal has reported that the Florida Marlins have inked former Yankee, Javier Vazquez to a one-year deal worth $7 million. The deal also includes a full no-trade clause.

This is a risky move for the Marlins because Vazquez is coming off a terrible year with the New York Yankees. Fortunately for the Marlins, Vazquez has been a better pitcher in the National League. It's a big move for Vazquez because he needs to bounce back after his sub-par 2010 season.

The Florida Marlins have agreed to a one-year contract with free-agent starter Javier Vazquez worth in the $7 million range, along with a full no-trade clause and the inability to offer arbitration next offseason. 

Coming off the Dan Uggla trade, the Florida Marlins were looking to use the intended salary on free agents to fulfill other areas of need. The Marlins signed catcher John Buck to a three-year deal worth $18 million earlier this month. 

Right handed pitcher Javier Vasquez agreed to a one year deal with the Florida Marlins.

It was reported that Vasquez had turned down a multi-year deal from another team, which only shows he wants to make himself a front of the rotation guy again, and get a great offer after 2011.

But for now, the deal is known to be somewhere around $7 million, according to baseball insider Ken Rosenthal.

In a contract negotiation that was already ugly, things between the Yankees and Derek Jeter have just gotten worse.

Bill Madden of the New York Daily News has stated that Jeter and the Yankees are at least $80 million apart in their contract negotiation.

It is possible that the two sides may be more that $80 million apart.

The Minnesota Twins offseason got quite the jump-start on Black Friday.

News came across the wire that the Twins were the highest bidder, and now have 30 days of exclusive contract negotiations with Tsuyoshi Nishioka. Nishioka, 26, is the reigning batting champ in Japan, and a sleek fielding middle infielder.

The winning bid from the Twins came in at over $5 million. If a contract can't be negotiated within 30 days, the Twins will get their bid back.