A Long Update...

It's been a while, but here's a quick glimpse at what's been going on in the World of Baseball.

• The New York Mets now have three catchers on their roster. Yesterday, they swung a deal with the Washington Nationals. The Metropolitans sent budding star outfielder Lastings Milledge to the Nats for defensive-catcher extraordinaire Brian Schneider and left-handed power hitting outfielder Ryan Church. The move comes at a slight surprise, as it had been reported that the Mets would not be trading for a catcher until they acquire a number one pitcher, in order to see who they would have to give up for that arm. But the Mets coveted a defensive-minded catcher, and they certainly got a good one in Schneider.
• This move pretty much concludes Johnny Estrada stay in Queens after a week and a half. The Mets will almost certainly non-tender Estrada a contract, which would make the switch-hitting catcher a free agent. He most likely will get a very nice contract from a team in need of a catcher, with the market for catchers being very high in demand, and low in supply.
• The Minnesota Twins and Tampa Bay Rays (notice no more "Devil" in Devil Rays) completed a semi-blockbuster trade on Wednesday. The Twins sent righty Matt Garza, shortstop Jason Bartlett, and minor leaguer Eduardo Morlan to the Rays. In return, the Twins acquired Rookie of the Year runner-up Delmon Young, infielder Brendan Harris, and minor leaguer Jason Pridie. In Young, the Twins get a potentially very good bat in the outfield, something they have been coveting for sometime now. Harris and Bartlett are pretty much the same player, I think. They both play shortstop, and will hit for average, and not much power. Garza gives the Rays another young arm to put in that rotation after Scott Kazmir and James Shields. In 2007, according to MLB.com, Garaza went 5-7 with the Twins, posting a nice 3.69 ERA and a 67/32 K/BB ratio.
• Perhaps the best closer on the free agent market, Fransico Cordero, left the Milwaukee Brewers to sign with the division rivals Cincinnati Reds. He signed a 4-year, $46 million contract with the Reds, finally giving the club a stable arm in the back of the rotation - something they haven't had since Danny Graves.
• The Chicago White Sox added a big piece to their struggling bullpen as well. They signed another former Brewer, Scott Linebrink, to a 4-year $19 million contract. Experts say that's going to end up being a bust of a deal, but if you look at the state of the Sox bullpen in 2007, it's no wonder why they were willing to dish out four years for a reliever. Their bullpen produced a very gawdy 5.47 ERA in 2007, something they certainly wish to rectify.
• Lefty Tom Glavine returned home to Atlanta, signing a 1-year contract with the Braves. The 300-game winner pitched for the Mets the last 5 seasons, and has gone back to the enemy - but he assures the New York fans that his decision was based on his family. Glavine will give the Braves the steady left-handed starter they so desperatley need behind righties John Smoltz and Tim Hudson.
• There have been a number of free agent signings over the last couple of days. Infielder Cesar Izturis signed a 1-year contract with the St. Louis Cardinals. The Rays inked comeback closer Troy Percival, who last year played with the Cards to a 2-year contract. Veteran left-handed starter Kenny Rogers, acting as his own agent, re-signed with the Detroit Tigers to a 1-year contract. The Colorado Rockies brought back two of their own, re-signing coveted catcher Yorvit Torrealba to a 2-year contract, and reliever Matt Herges to a 1-year deal. Veteran reliever Doug Brocail signed a 1-year contract with the Houston Astros, who are close to a 3-year deal with free agent Kaz Matsui. And former ace Kerry Wood re-signed with the Chicago Cubs.
• The Winter Meetings in Nashville begin on Monday, and it should prove to be a very interesting couple of days. Names like Rowand, Andruw, Johan, Haren, and Cabrera should be mentioned a few dozen times.