Fan News

The Major League Baseball Hall of Fame process is flawed.

OK, we got that out of the way. So now there is no real need to dive into why it should be tweaked or how it should be fixed—a Baseball Writers’ Association of America panel recommended expanding the number of players eligible for each ballot from 10 to 12 during the Winter Meetings earlier this month.

For many MLB teams, the offseason doesn't begin until the new year.

Clubs such as the San Diego Padres and Chicago White Sox have been aggressive from the beginning and have made drastic improvements to their rosters. Will they automatically be the winners when Opening Day of the 2015 season begins? There's still plenty of time, so we'll have to wait and see.

Take a look at the Baltimore Orioles last season. Their two biggest moves came in February, signing Ubaldo Jimenez and then Nelson Cruz in what turned out to be the best deal of the offseason.

Chicago Cubs shortstop Starlin Castro was reportedly detained by police for questioning on Saturday in the Dominican Republic following a nightclub shooting, though his agent claims he voluntarily spoke with authorities.

Jon Morosi of Fox Sports provides a statement from Castro's agent:

Max Scherzer and James Shields still need homes for 2015 and beyond.

The two starting pitchers remain untouched on MLB's free-agent market, waiting to select a new employer before Opening Day. While action predictably intensified once fellow ace Jon Lester made his decision, the other premium hurlers did not budge on expediting the process.

Per usual, this MLB offseason is filled with interesting moves. Unlike seasons past, however, the amount of activity since the end of the World Series leaves much to dissect when analyzing the surprises and disappointments.

To be clear, we will stay away from individual contracts or trades. Instead, we will focus on things at the franchise level.

It's not easy to find value on the MLB offseason market. 

Just take a look at the Toronto Blue Jays, who landed one of the best catchers in baseball but had to dish out a five-year, $82 million deal to bring Russell Martin to the Rogers Centre. Simply put, the top winter targets are almost always attached to exorbitant price tags. 

Hiroki Kuroda has reportedly agreed to a deal with the Hiroshima Toyo Carp of the Nippon Professional Baseball League.

Sports Illustrated translated Daisuke Sugiura of Yahoo Japan's original report:

As we get closer to 2015, the New York Mets can now begin to predict what the Opening Day starting lineup may look like with just about every hitter at every position pretty much set to start there.

Recently, manager Terry Collins mentioned what he thought the lineup could look like in April.

Here is what the Mets lineup will probably look like on Opening Day.

Through their signing of Jon Lester, trade for Miguel Montero and other various moves this offseason, the Chicago Cubs have made one thing clear: They plan to compete starting in 2015. Whether they're truly competitive this upcoming season remains to be seen, but for the first time in several years, the team actually has an expectation of success.

If you thought the MLB hot stove would temporarily switch to the off position for the holidays, think again.

After all, some teams still have needs to be met, and the number of days until pitchers and catchers report to spring training is dwindling. It should come as no surprise, then, that there has been speculation around the league regarding potential trade targets.