Baseball Connection

Vlad Jr. is playing some winter ball in the Dominican Republic and he looks trimmer than he did during the summer. Keeping himself in shape will pay dividends for Vlad - he still hasn't even scratched his potential. Marcell Ozuna won the Edgar Martinez award for being the league's best designated hitter. The Rangers signed David Dahl to a one-year deal hoping he can stay healthy.

The Phillies have hired Dave Dombrowski to be their President of Baseball Operations. Dombrowski is one of the most decorated executives in baseball history and his track record suggests that he'll be making some big moves in the near future. What should we expect to see happen in Philly?

Who are the best in today's game? The 2020 All-MLB teams have been announced. They include a first and second team. Mike Trout and DJ LeMahieu are the only players to appear on the First Team for the second straight year. Jacob deGrom is the only pitcher to attain All-MLB honors for the second straight year.

Carlos Santana has agreed to a two-year deal worth $17.5 million with the Kansas City Royals. Don't let the 2020 numbers fool you. Santana is a switch-hitting on-base machine with 30-homer pop in his bat. Adam Eaton is heading back to the White Sox on a one-year, $7 million deal. Eaton was a strong contributor for the White Sox just a few years ago, but was shipped out when they began a rebuild. That rebuild is clearly over now.

The Angels have landed a new closer. Raisel Iglesias is on his way to Anaheim in exchange for Noe Ramirez. The Angels are retooling their bullpen after it posted an MLB-worst 14 blown saves in 2020. The White Sox traded for Lance Lynn. It cost them their #5 prospect in Dane Dunning, but Chicago now has an excellent third starter as they look to build off their recent success.

Billy Wagner built a career on his 100-mph fastball. Wagner is one of the greatest relievers of all time, but the origin of his fastball almost sounds like a folk tale. Wagner is naturally right-handed, but he learned to throw lefty after breaking his right arm multiple times as a child. He was also short and threw around 80 mph in high school, so he didn't get any looks from Division 1 colleges. How did Billy Wagner manage to develop into a star?

After a year with no fans and some financial losses incurred by a pandemic, the Phillies seem to be strapped for money. Are the Phillies really considering trading Zack Wheeler just one year after signing him? Wheeler was excellent for the Phillies this year but he is owed significant money over the next few years. What message does this send to Bryce Harper? All this (and more) on today's episode.

In a surprising move, Chris Young has been named the next general manager of the Texas Rangers. Young just recently hung up his spikes a couple years ago, and now he finds himself as a GM. He'll bring a unique perspective that GM's rarely have - the perspective of a former MLB player.

Corey Knebel has been traded to the Dodgers. Knebel will try to resurrect his career after a rough first year back from Tommy John. It always seems like the Yankees have too many outfielders, but their main guys (Stanton and Judge) are often injured. As such, their depth is necessary. The Yankees are reportedly looking at Michael Brantley, but Brantley is too good to be a potential bench piece.

56 new free agents were made after their team's decided not to tender them a contract by yesterday's deadline. Some of these players, like Adam Duvall, are coming off strong seasons. At the end of the day, teams are making purely financial decisions. We take a look at the top 8 new free agents.