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The 2013 San Francisco Giants consisted of essentially the same team that won the World Series in 2012. They had the same pitching rotation and starting lineup (sans Melky Cabrera).

Yet, the 2013 Giants proved they were an entirely different team from that of 2012, despite having largely the same players. They won 76 games, finishing 21st in runs scored and 22nd in ERA. So why, a year removed from 94 wins and a World Series title, did the Giants finish third in the NL West? What made the difference? 

Hey, just because it's the holiday season doesn't mean we should ignore the fantasy baseball season.

While Robinson Cano's massive 10-year, $240 million deal with the Seattle Mariners a couple weeks ago was the last major trade or signing, there have been loads of mini-moves in the past several days.

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

Locating the best free agents used to be a straightforward affair. Batting average. Home runs. RBI. Wins. Saves. These were the things teams wanted.

But somewhere along the line, shopping for free agents got complicated.

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.

It has been a wild offseason for the Boston Red Sox following their 2013 World Series title.

Boston has already endured a slew of transactions that have taken place since the team walked off with the World Series trophy.

A year ago, the Chicago Cubs bullpen was a weak point. That's saying something. Slowly but surely, the unit got better in the second half of the season, and now with some new additions to the 'pen, it looks like the team actually might be able to secure some wins for its starting pitchers. 

Rumors of Major League Baseball implementing protective headgear for pitchers have been floating around for years, though there hasn't been any significant movement on that front for a while.

Until now, it seems.