Denard Span Signs With Giants

The San Francisco Giants agreed to a 3-year deal with veteran outfielder Denard Span. The Giants plan to have him play left field, which he hasn't done since he played for Minnesota in 2009. San Francisco found a good fit for their lineup as Span can play average defense with an above average bat. Span, who has hit at the leadoff spot for 8 of his major league seasons, is projected to do the same for the Giants. While Span posted above a .300 average with the Washington Nationals, and a career .287 average, health is Span's biggest problem as he missed most of the 2015 season and some of the 2014 season. The Giants hope that he is healthy and ready for a 2016 playoff push.

Griffey and Piazza Inducted Into Hall!

Ken Griffey Jr.

Mike Piazza

Griffey And Piazza Make The Hall Of Fame!

The moment many people have been waiting for has happened. Ken Griffey Jr. and Mike Piazza have been elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Ken Griffey will be the first to go in as a mariner, and Mike Piazza the first to go in as a New York Met.

"I played 13 years as a Mariner, which is longer than the other two teams I played for -- Chicago and Cincinnati. I think I did most of my damage as a Mariner."

The Mariners drafted Griffey in the first round of the 1987 draft. Piazza was drafted by the Dodgers in 1988. Griffey was on 99.3% of ballots, which broke Tom Seaver's record of 98.84 in 1992, and Piazza was on 83% of ballots.

Griffey On The Cusp For The Hall

With the recent releasing of the hall of fame ballots, it is becoming clear that Ken Griffey Jr. is a clear candidate to be a shoe-in for Cooperstown. He is on track to set the record for the highest number of vote percentages in history. Griffey was a 13-time All-Star, an American League MVP award and 630 home runs across 22 big league seasons with the Mariners, Reds and the White Sox.

Reports: Dodgers Agree To 8-Year Deal With Kenta Maeda

The Los Angeles Dodgers agreed to terms with Japanese free agent starting pitcher Kenta Maeda on an 8-year deal, although the club has not confirmed the signing. Maeda previously played in Japan with Hiroshima Carp and posted a 15-8 record with a 2.09 earned run average in 29 starts in 2015. Maeda will serve as a replacement along with lefty Scott Kazmir for Zack Greinke, who just recently signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks this past December. Maeda has been compared to Yankees pitcher Masahiro Tanaka and Rangers ace Yu Darvish because they all have one thing in common: they all dominated their way through the Nippon Professional Baseball League in Japan. We will see if Maeda has what it takes to play in the show.

Cespedes, Davis Among Stars Still Left In Free Agent Pool

After the Red Sox signed David Price, the Diamondbacks signed Zack Geinke, and the Cubs splash a deal with Jason Hayward, you'd think that there wouldn't be many stars left in the 2016 free agent pool. Think again because all-star first baseman Chris Davis and all-star outfielder Yoenis Cespedes have not signed with any team yet, which keeps fans and general managers on their toes. The signing of any two of these players could drastically effect a team's success in the future years.

Chris Davis supposedly turned down a six-year, $150 million deal from the Orioles, and you can only imagine what deal is going to attract Davis if he turned down that deal from Baltimore. On the other hand, Cespedes is looking for a six-year deal worth over $100 million which is way too expensive for most teams in the MLB to afford.

Stay tuned as we follow the signings of these two sluggers through the off-season.

Yankees Acquire Aroldis Chapman From Reds

The MLB off-season can not be complete without the New York Yankees making a splash for some big time player. On Monday, The New York Yankees welcomed fire throwing left-hander Aroldis Chapman to their bullpen to serve as their closing pitcher. The Yankees acquired him in a trade with the Cincinnati Reds for four minor league prospects. The Reds received two right-handers: Caleb Cotham and Rookie Davis, and two infielders: Eric Jagielo and Tony Renda.

"We felt this was an opportunity for us to add a big arm to our bullpen," said Yankees general manager Brian Cashman who already has two other hard throwing arms in Dellin Betances and lefty Andrew Miller.

Chapman holds the record for the hardest fastball ever thrown in the major leagues at 105.1 MPH. Betances can hit 100 MPH and Miller can also reach up to 98-100 MPH.

If there is one thing to expect from the 2016 New York Yankees, is that their bullpen will be stellar and is arguably the best bullpen in the major leagues.