(Originally posted on 4SportBoston.com )

In two moves shocking to both the fans in Boston and Major League Baseball alike, the Red Sox inked starting pitcher John Lackey to a five-year, $82.5 million deal. This evening, the Sox made a second splash of the day with a two-year, $15.5 million deal.

What direction is this team heading in?

The New York Mets have recently let go four  non-tendered players—Tim Redding, Jeremy Reed, Cory Sullivan and Lance Broadway.

Redding put together a terrible season in 2009, posting a record of 3-6, collecting 76 strikeouts with a disgusting 5.10 ERA in 120 innings pitched. Redding was signed by the Mets for an insane amount of money ($2.25 million) for a below average pitcher.

Minnesota Twins general manager Bill Smith just got a reprieve.

After sitting idly by and watching a number of the club’s offseason targets sign elsewhere in the past two weeks, Smith now has a second chance at making some major moves this offseason.

Smith’s reprieve comes as the free agent pool just received an infusion of new talent.

This infusion came as a result of the non-tender deadline, which passed at 11:59 p.m. ET Saturday.

It's easy to get excited about a 22-year-old prospect who jacked 27 homers between AA and AAA last season.  Especially when, during his September cup of coffee with Cincinnati, and in his second at-bat for the Reds, he blasted one about 30 rows deep over the right field fence of Great American Ball Park.

Juan Francisco, a left-handed batter standing at 6'2" and tipping the scales at 220 pounds, undoubtedly has the body of a power hitter.

Well, well, it seems like the Washington Nationals are finally thinking like a major league franchise.

Just a day after non-tendering the supposedly-healthy-but-no-knows-for-sure Scott Olsen, the Nationals have agreed to sign him to a one-year, $1 million contract that with incentives that could pay him up to $4 million.

I know that many Cubs fans can't separate their heart from their head when it comes to MLB's Hall of Fame. From Ron Santo to Andre Dawson, Cubs fans everywhere let their fan loyalty cloud their judgement.

And that's okay. In fact, it is to be expected. But, as usual, I stand alone as a die-hard Cubs fan (since birth) who is not only willing but able to separate fact from fantasy.

More on Santo later. The main premise of this article is The Hawk, aka Andre Dawson.

This is when it sets in.  Same time every year.  The leaves fall.  The skies turn cold and grey.  The winds of November whip across the Great Lakes.  And baseball fanatics …the kind that subscribe to the Sporting News , play fantasy baseball and always read the line scores….go into withdrawal mode.

With the arbitration deadline set for 8:59pm PST, the San Diego Padres are going to try and work out a deal with right hander Kevin Correia.

If they're unable to do that, according to MLB.com's Corey Brock, the Padres will attempt to trade him instead of letting him go for nothing. Problem with that notion is, why would any team trade for Correia if they know they can sign him without giving up another player?

This year, we had a replay of the 1950 classic, the last time the Phillies and Yankees met for the World Championship, with both teams showing off their shiny new ballparks. 

With the winter meetings over and the Phillies' bench restocked, fans have turned their attention to Ruben Amaro Jr.'s non-attempts to trade for Toronto's Roy Halladay. What was once an exercise in prospect roulette may have taken a turn towards blockbuster.