As we head into the stretch run before Santa makes his rounds, here are some tidbits around MLB.
The Chicago Cubs made a decent sized free agent splash, agreeing to a four-year, $52 million deal with right-hander Edwin Jackson. While the 29-year-old doesn’t quite get around as much as many of my ex-girlfriends, Jackson will be joining his eighth organization since making his debut at age 19. Jackson has been particularly productive the past four seasons or so and should be a nice fit with the Cubs. While he is not the top of the rotation starter that he was originally projected to become, he is a still a solid mid to backend option.
The Miami Marlins agreed to a one-year, $2.75 million deal with veteran infielder Placido Polanco. While the 37-year-old may not be the hitter he once was, Polanco is still solid and will provide much needed veteran leadership for the young Marlins.
The Texas Rangers have had a tough offseason to date, as they have lost out on many of the top names that they were pursuing. To ease a bit of the loss of both Josh Hamilton and Mike Napoli, the Rangers have agreed to a one-year, $7.5 million deal with free agent catcher A.J. Pierzynski. The 35-year-old (turns 36 on December 30th) hit a career high 27 home runs last season for the Chicago White Sox.
