Winter Meeting Wrap-up

This week was the annual Baseball Winter Meetings, and this year's location was good ol' Nashville Tennessee. The Winter Meetings are a time where general managers, managers and players all come together to see who is going where, who is staying put and who is going to get paid how much. There was a lot of talk going into Nashville surrounding such players as Johan Santana, Andruw Jones, Miguel Cabrera and more. And for the first time in recent memory, potential blockbuster trades were the focus of this year's meetings, as opposed to big free agent signings.

• The only real blockbuster trade that took place pretty much crept out of nowhere. The Florida Marlins filled all of their holes in one trade. They sent highly coveted, 24-year old third baseman Miguel Cabrera and energetic left-handed starter Dontrelle Willis to the Detroit Tigers in exchange for a number of rookies. Pitcher Andrew Miller, outfielder Cameron Maybin and catcher Mike Rabelo are the players the Fish received with major league experience. Also included in the deal were pitchers Burke Badenhop, Eulogio De La Cruz and Dallas Trahern.
• For weeks, Cabrera had been rumored to be heading to Los Angeles (either to the Dodgers or the Angels), but Detroit came up from behind and swept the slugging infielder along with D-Train away from the Fish. The Marlins were desperately seeking help in centerfield and at catcher, and they got the help they needed in the speedy Maybin and talented Rabelo. Andrew Miller is a first-round draft pick, according to baseballreference.com, and went 5-5 in 13 games started in 2007.
• In other Winter Meetings happenings, a couple of big-name Free Agents found homes. Perennial Gold Glove winner Andruw Jones landed a 2-year contract from the Dodgers, shifting the incumbent center fielder Juan Pierre over to left. In addition, the Kansas City Royals signed slugging outfielder Jose Guillen to a 3-year contract. But Guillen will serve a 15-game suspension to handed down by Major League Baseball to begin the season. Guillen had reportedly used steroids and HGH, from 2003-2005, according to ESPN.com. HGH, human growth hormone, was banned by Major League Baseball for players with major league contracts in 2005.
• Colorado Rockies' 2007 hero Kaz Matsui signed a 3-year contract with the Houston Astros to become their everyday second baseman. In '07, KazMat his .288 and also swiped 32 bases, helping the Rocks reach the World Series for the first time in franchise history. Matusi takes over for long-time 'Stros second baseman Craig Biggio, who retired after the 2007 season.
• The Winter Meetings may have ended rather incomplete, but it left a lot of possibilities to occur before Spring Training:
• Will Santana be a Twin, Yankee, Red Sock, Met, Mariner, Dodger, Angel, or perhaps he might decide to pitch in Japan! That last option was of course fiction, but when there are a whole bunch of potential suitors for the lefty, it's like a rat race to see who will end up with the grand prize - a two-time Cy Young Award winner.
• What about other big-name pitchers in the trade market, like Oakland's Dan Haren and Baltimore's Erik Bedard? Both have been considered high-budget teams' fallback option to Santana. But both would service a team's rotation very nicely.
• The third base market got a little bit clearer after the Cabrera trade. The St. Louis Cardinals are reportedly shopping former All-Star Scott Rolen, in part due to his hefty contract and his poor relations with team manager Tony LaRussa. There were rumors of the Milwuakee Brewers as being a potential trade partner, but those have cooled off recently. Baltimore's Miguel Tejada is another big name being thrown out there in trade rumors. And even though Tejada is a career-shortstop, many teams have pursued him to be their third baseman, and one team could reap the benefits.