Fan News

The Cubs' future was on display late last summer with franchise cornerstones Anthony Rizzo and Starlin Castro playing on the same field as highly regarded prospects such as Javier Baez, Jorge Soler and Arismendy Alcantara.

Suffice it to say, the future is bright on the North Side of Chicago.

There are three types of MLB free agents.

There are those who are flat-out special and have been for some time. Then there are those coming off of their best season as they head into free agency. And sometimes, a free agent is both.

You can consider Russell Martin an example of a special player—offense, defense and leadership all wrapped up into one right-handed-hitting catcher—who played his finest baseball in 2014, parlaying it into a five-year, $82 million contract with the Toronto Blue Jays.

Billy Butler's quest to find a team has reportedly reached its final destination. The former Kansas City Royals designated hitter is a free agent for the first time in his career, so this was a new experience. 

According to Robert Murray of MLBDailyRumors.com, Butler has agreed to a contract with the Oakland Athletics: 

USA Today's Bob Nightengale added:

Entering the offseason, general manager Brian Sabean and the San Francisco Giants front office faced a question regarding free agent Pablo Sandoval that seemingly had no correct answer.

Seven Seattle Mariners prospects concluded play at the Arizona Fall League last weekend.

The Mariners sent three position players and four pitchers to the league, which lasted nearly a month-and-a-half and attracted some of the top prospects in baseball.

Among those representing Seattle were Taijuan Walker and D.J. Peterson, two of the top young players in the club's system.

After two subpar seasons as a member of the Cleveland Indians, Nick Swisher's days with the Tribe could soon be numbered.

According to Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com, the Indians are considering trading the 33-year-old first baseman and outfielder in exchange for a player with a similarly large contract:

Giancarlo Stanton is rich. You and I are not. 

Perhaps this explains why we weren’t slamming $20,000 champagne and presumably playing high-stakes ostrich polo with Stanton inside a Miami nightclub this week.

Stop being surprised. It has been happening for years, and the end is nowhere in sight.

Whether you think it is bad or good, the level of care from the payers and the payees is virtually nonexistent. There will always be a market, and there will always be someone willing to meet the price.

Veteran left-handed pitcher Zach Duke has bounced around the majors over the last several seasons, but he has reportedly signed a multi-year deal with the Chicago White Sox, according to Jon Morosi of Fox Sports:

New general manager John Hart may need to learn how to operate a construction truck in order to be fully qualified to take on the enormous reclamation project that is the Atlanta Braves. 

Hart began the process Monday by shipping beloved outfielder Jason Heyward and reliever Jordan Walden to St. Louis for starter Shelby Miller and pitching prospect Tyrell Jenkins.