Baseball Connection

After dealing Yu Darvish earlier in the winter, the Cubs don't have a very strong pitching staff. They just added Trevor Williams who will look to bounce back this year. It seems like they'll hang onto Bryant/Rizzo/Baez for now, but it will likely be a middling year for the North Siders. The White Sox, on the other hand, have a great rotation. They also just brought back Carlos Rodon on a one-year deal to compete for a bullpen or 5th starter spot.

The Cardinals and Rockies have agreed to a swap with Nolan Arenado. Arenado will head to St. Louis in a complex deal, but at the end of the day he's leaving a Rockies franchise that he had grown frustrated with. Colorado won't be contending this year, so will they be trading Trevor Story as well? Didi Gregorius re-signed with the Phillies.

After letting Kyle Schwarber walk earlier in the winter the Cubs have replaced him with a similar player - Joc Pederson (one-year, $7 million). Pederson crushes righties but has been a liability against lefties. He has 30+ home run power and is a defensive upgrade from Schwarber. Adam Wainwright is heading back to St. Louis on a one-year, $8 million deal. Wainwright is the face of the Cardinals franchise. He's old, but still highly effective.

The Blue Jays continued their aggressive offseason by trading for Steven Matz. They'll send a trio of prospect pitchers to the Mets, headlined by Sean Reid-Foley. Masahiro Tanaka has agreed to a two-year deal with the Rakuten Eagles - his former team in Japan. We haven't heard much about Trevor Bauer lately, but the Mets have made him an offer.

The Phillies have agreed to a deal to bring back JT Realmuto. Realmuto's 5-year, $115.5 million deal will keep him in Philadelphia for the rest of his prime. Marcus Semien is heading up to Toronto on a 1-year, $18 million deal. He'll play second base and Cavan Biggio will move to third base.

In a rare trade between rivals, the Yankees sent Adam Ottavino to the Red Sox in exchange for cash or a player to be named later. This is a salary dump for the Yankees as they seek to stay under the luxury tax threshold. Will there be a universal DH in 2021?

The Nationals continue to use the free agent market to fill gaps in their roster. They just signed Brad Hand to a one-year deal worth $10.5 million. After having the eight worst bullpen ERA in the Majors last year, Washington is getting a huge boost here. J.A. Happ will pitch for the Twins this year as their likely 4th starter. Where will Nelson Cruz end up? All this on today's episode.

The Hot Stove is on a rolling boil. Jameson Taillon is heading to the Yankees in trade - Pittsburgh will receive four prospects. The Red Sox added depth to their squad by signing Garrett Richards and Enrique Hernandez. Mr. National is returning to the only place he's ever known. All this (and more) on today's episode.

Hank Aaron passed away at the age of 86. Aaron was an American hero and currently sits in second place on the all-time home run leader-board. To many, Hank Aaron is the GOAT. We take a look at what made Hammerin' Hank so special.

One thing that sets baseball apart from other sports is the sheer number of games played in a season. Teams often play a game every night for a week or more. Throw in the wrinkle of travel for away games, and you get a grueling schedule. Due to their stadium being occupied for a convention, a young Astros club became road warriors for 4 weeks. We discuss the Astros' 26-game road trip in 1992.