Free-agent relief pitcher Brett Cecil will have a new home for the first time in his eight-year MLB career, as he signed a four-year deal with the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports.

Offseason rumors tend to look like a stock car race.

There are early front-runners, of course. And those teams linked to players in the early stages of the offseason do, quite frequently, end up acquiring said player.

But like any great stock car race, there’s jostling for position. Teams one-up each other, whether in the trade or free-agent markets. Trailing teams often make a last-minute effort and land a player, which nets baseball its share of offseason surprises.

Major League Baseball's 2016 season officially came to an end on Friday night with Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout taking home top honors as the best major leaguer at the Esurance MLB Awards show. 

That was one of 19 awards given out as voted on by former MLB players, front-office executives, media and fans to determine the best of the best in the sport last season.  

The Atlanta Braves seem to have a Chris Sale obsession. I say we stage an intervention before it gets any worse.

Who's with me?

OK, maybe some concessions are in order first. The Braves and Sale are indeed a match made in hot stove heaven from a strictly on-paper perspective. Veteran signees R.A. Dickey and Bartolo Colon will boost a starting rotation that posted a 4.87 ERA in 2016—but not as much as Sale would.

Andrew Cashner turned in arguably the worst season of his career in 2016, but the Texas Rangers took a chance on him Friday to the tune of a one-year, $10 million contract.

Kris Bryant won the NL MVP on Thursday, joining Dustin Pedroia and Cal Ripken as the only players in MLB history to win Rookie of the Year, MVP and a World Series within their first two seasons.

Bleacher Report will be bringing sports fans the most interesting and engaging Cold Hard Fact of the day, presented by Coors Light.

Source: B/R Insights

Superstar-caliber players generally dominate headlines each MLB offseason.

They will be agreeing to big-money deals and are often viewed as the missing piece that could push a team over the top in its pursuit of a championship.

However, scouring the market for bargains and taking a flier on a potential bounce-back candidate can be just as important in building a successful contender.

Who's up for some hot stove fan fiction?

Hey, we might as well indulge ourselves while we wait for Major League Baseball's offseason to kick into high gear. There have been some moves, but nothing too major yet.

All the big moves exist only as rumors. They might not come true. Or maybe they will! That's the exciting part about rumors.

Imagine the 2017 seasons as a bunch of puzzle pieces spread all over a table.

We know which players will influence the outcome of the upcoming baseball season, but we don’t know how they will fit together. The winter provides us with many of those answers.

But until free agents sign and teams conclude trade talks, a handful of questions will surround the 2017 offseason. These are the biggest among them.

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Oakland Athletics managing partner and co-owner Lew Wolff is stepping down. 

According to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, Athletics primary owner John Fisher will be taking over Wolff's role.