Fan News

Since the day AT&T Park was officially open for business, the San Francisco Giants have been an attractive destination for pitchers because the stadium plays as one of the most pitcher-friendly parks in all of baseball.

If you thought the Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox were done signing players this offseason just because they respectively landed Jon Lester and Pablo Sandoval and Hanley Ramirez, think again.

Boston and Chicago are pursuing backup catchers, but they are not the only ones involved in rumors from around the league.

Read on for some of the latest buzz from around baseball as the season approaches.

David Ross

The latest domino of the Atlanta Braves' offseason rebuild has fallen, as Atlanta agreed Friday to send outfielder Justin Upton to the San Diego Padres in exchange for prospects.

The Braves made the move official on Twitter:

Major League Baseball is a month-and-a-half into the offseason and already oh-so-many moves have been made. But there's no shortage of rumors and speculation—and questions—around a number of free agents and trade candidates, as well as teams' objectives and plans of attack.

Some of the latest buzz centers on the surprisingly aggressive San Diego Padres, the bidding for star Korean shortstop Jung-Ho Kang and why there doesn't seem to be much chatter around free agent James Shields.

Troy Tulowitzki is one of baseball's most talented infielders. Yet with the shortstop locked into a massive contract for several more years and injury issues plaguing him in recent seasons, the Colorado Rockies are reportedly shopping him around the league.

Cincinnati Reds general manager Walt Jocketty finally made a significant play on the last day of the winter meetings, flipping Alfredo Simon for two of Detroit's top-10 prospects before swapping Mat Latos for two promising young talents from Miami.

When you also consider the departures of other names such as Jonathan Broxton, Ryan Ludwick, Jack Hannahan, Logan Ondrusek and Chris Heisey, in total, the Reds have shed about $30 million in payroll.

After bouncing from coast to coast in less than a year, Jake Peavy has decided to stay put in the National League West Division, as the former Cy Young winner has reportedly agreed to a contract with the San Francisco Giants.

There's not much to talk about regarding hitters on Major League Baseball's offseason market. There was once, but signings and trades have taken care of that. They're all gone now. Mostly.

But pitchers? That's a different story.

Many of baseball’s top prospects are spending the offseason playing in winter leagues in the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Venezuela, hoping to get a head start on the 2014 season and improve their chances of cracking an Opening Day roster. 

As it is usually the case given the time of year, the prospect pool between the four leagues is heavy on hitters. Unfortunately, the crop of talent in the leagues this winter is fairly weak and features fewer big-name prospects than previous years.

Somewhere in a quiet corner of AT&T Park, San Francisco Giants general manager Brian Sabean pushes the record button on an R-2 unit and says, "Help us, Max Scherzer. You're our only hope."