Takashi Saito

It's time we all take a breather from worrying about the sports themselves and focus on the players involved. This article is written with the intent of recognizing that there are bigger things that we should be focusing on at this time in the world rather than sports. On 3/11/2011 an unprecedented 8.9 earthquake rocked the country of Japan. It brought devastation, injuries, life loss and widespread panic but that was only the beginning.

The Milwaukee Brewers are leaving no stone unturned as they head into the 2011 baseball season. They already addressed their starting rotation in a major way when they acquired both Shaun Marcum and Zack Greinke via trades.

Veteran reliever Takashi Saito has agreed to a one-year deal with the Milwaukee Brewers, according to the team's spokesperson.

Saito will be 41 years old when next season arrives, which leaves fans wondering why any team would want to sign him.

It's because of the fact that he has been very effective and a reliable pitcher out of the bullpen. For example, last year with the Atlanta Braves, he posted an ERA of 2.83 in 54 innings.

The Cubs managed to get Carlos Pena for only $5 mil this year ($5 mil deferred until 2012) and stole Kerry Wood for $1.5 mil.  Factoring in arbitration raises though, they only have a few mil left to work with, so what are the rest of the possibilities for the Cubs offseason?  In this article I’ll look at free agent possibilities and later will look at trade possibilities:

The position players all look set and will probably break down to 13 people:

At the age of 40, Japanese right-handed reliever Takashi Saito gave the Atlanta Braves a very solid season in a year in which they desperately wanted to win it all, knowing that legendary manager Bobby Cox was going to retire after the season ended.

In his sixth Major League Baseball season, Saito posted the following stats:

Games played: 56

41 hits in 54 IP

69 Strikeouts

2.83 ERA

From the third week of May to the All-Star Break, when the Atlanta Braves were rolling, Billy Wagner was one of the best closers in baseball.

Over that approximate two month stretch, the 39-year-old southpaw was 16-for-17 in save opportunities while collecting one win in a total of 23 appearances.

Atlanta is at it again.

Just a day after acquiring Billy Wagner to serve as the club’s new closer, the Braves have reportedly signed free agent reliever Takashi Saito to a one-year deal.

When Cubs General Manager Jim Hendry re-signed left-handed reliever John Grabow to a two-year extension last month, he removed the Cubs from the hunt for free agent southpaw Billy Wagner.

Tuesday, foxsports.com reported that Wagner had found his home for 2010, after agreeing to a one-year deal with Atlanta.