The National League The Kevin Towers Dan Strittmatter of AZ Snake Pit: "Just a couple weeks ago, I railed into the Phillies' signing of Jonathan Papelbon on the basis that hard-throwing, max-effort closers like Papelbon simply don't hold up well as they progress into their early-30's. However, seeing D-backs reliever J.J. Putz come up on the list (particularly as an example of someone who did collapse in their early-30's) brought up another question in my mind." The Frank Wren Talking Chop: "One member of the Atlanta Braves bullpen who hasn't been discussed much here at Talking Chop is Peter Moylan. Moylo had it rough last year, succumbing to both back and shoulder injuries, and only pitching in 13 games. Eligible for arbitration this year, it is possible that the Braves could non-tender him." The Theo Epstein Paul Sullivan of The Chicago Tribune: "The Cubs remain involved in the Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder sweepstakes, whether they're serious contenders or not. A St. Louis Post-Dispatch report said the Cubs made a qualifying offer to Pujols and are expected to do likewise with Fielder." The Walt Jocketty Mark Sheldon of MLB.com: "As the Cardinals' Tony La Russa went off into retirement this offseason, Reds skipper Dusty Baker has become an elder statesman of sorts among Major League managers. Baker has been managing since 1993 with the Giants, Cubs and Reds, and he has taken only one year off -- 2007 -- during that span. As he heads into the final year of his two-year contract with Cincinnati, Baker was asked on Monday how much longer he wanted to remain in the dugout." The Dan O'Dowd Troy E. Renck of The Denver Post: "Huston Street heard the rumors, read the stories, received the text messages. He knew his days with the Rockies were numbered given the team's bullpen depth and desire to use his money to pursue a veteran starter or everyday player." The Michael Hill Tim Dahlberg of Miami Herald: "While the feds are busy investigating the financing of Miami's new stadium, Jeffrey Loria has been busy trying to field an opening-day lineup with players fans will pay the usual new-stadium premium to see." The Jeff Luhnow Timothy De Block of Crawfish Boxes: "Not only is Ed Wade being paid for this season but he'll be paid for the 2013 season as well due to an evergreen clause that activated at the end of October. No doubt Drayton McLane on his way out hooked up his boys. But this isn't really about that. This is about a general manager search that has seen several high profile names decline to even interview with the organization." The Ned Colletti Eric Stephen of True Blue L.A.: "In addition to the Dodgers resuming a full three-game Freeway Series exhibition set against the Angels for the first time since 2007, and talking with the agent for relief pitcher Mike MacDougal, general manager Ned Colletti told reporters on Tuesday that he was working on a trade, though nothing was imminent." The Doug Melvin Brew Crew Ball: "The only two big name free agents linked to the Brewers so far during the winter meetings have been Jimmy Rollins and Aramis Ramirez. I'd much prefer pursuit of Rollins if the two look to be similarly expensive. But I'm starting to like the idea of Ramirez in the lineup if the alternative scenario of free agent spending is a couple of bullpen pieces and Yuni. The only problem is that, as a Brewer fan, I don't really like the guy so much. So, here I try to convince myself otherwise." The Sandy Alderson Amazin Avenue: "Ken Davidoff sets the record straight after there was plenty of scrutiny of the Mets' months-old decision not to trade Jose Reyes because they would supposedly be pushed to the third round." The Ruben Amaro Jr. Corey Siedman of Phillies Nation: "The Phillies are out on Gio Gonzalez, according to Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com. Knobler says the Phillies would not have parted with Cole Hamels anyway, they would have dealt either Kyle Kendrick or Joe Blanton to make room for the lefty starter. It appears the Phillies have made the wise decision to move on." The Neal Huntington Bucs Dugout: "Rob Biertempfel reports the Pirates are no longer in the bidding for third baseman Wilson Betemit." The John Mozeliak Viva El Birdos: :A consummate pitching democrat, Jake Westbrook had long been seen as a fit for the pitch-to-contact philosophy of the Cardinals and Duncan. In need of a pitching upgrade, the Cardinals sent fan-favorite Ryan Ludwick to the Padres in a three-club deal that saw Westbrook sent from the Indians to St. Louis." The Jed Hoyer Gaslamp Ball: "You'll remember Omar Minaya as the former GM of the Mets and the Expos. Minaya had the wonderful job of running the Expos while they were owned by 29 other baseball owners looking to dismantle the team and move it to Washington, DC." The Brian Sabean Grant Brisbee of McCovey Chronicles: "He was the unlikeliest Giant ever. He played in the unlikeliest season ever. Andres Torres was 2010. Heck, you don't even have to add "Giant" in back there. He was just about the unlikeliest player ever." The Mike Rizzo Adam Kilgore of The Washington Post: "It would be a jarring move for Pujols to land in Miami and its new stadium, but Nationals General Manager Mike Rizzo is resolved not to base his decision on any signings or deals other teams make." The American League The Dan Duquette Dan Connolly of The Baltimore Sun: "So, bottom line, will the Orioles make any significant moves this week? We'll let Dan Duquette take a stab at that one." The Ben Cherington Alex Speier of WEEI.com: "At one point in early-November, it appeared that closer Ryan Madson would be the first person to set the free agent market. Madson reportedly was on the cusp of a four-year deal with the Phillies near the start of the bidding season." The Kenny Williams Jim Margalus of South Side Sox: "If I could evaluate Mark Buehrle in that mindset, I'd probably say that there was no way around it. Four years is a lot for Buehrle, and $14.5 million can be spent more effectively elsewhere. If the Sox are truly rebuilding, Buehrle's help wouldn't be nearly help enough." The Chris Antonetti Lets Go Tribe: "Similar to the exercise with Lou Marson from this morning -- who is Matt LaPorta similarly to historically? We're looking for players with very little defensive value who have really struggled to hit in their young careers." The Dave Dombrowski Tony Paul of The Detroit News: "Since the Tigers acquired slugging first baseman Miguel Cabrera before the 2008 season, he has been almost exclusively the cleanup hitter in manager Jim Leyland's lineup. That could change in 2012, Leyland acknowledged Wednesday at the winter meetings." The Dayton Moore Royals Review: "While the Royals aren't actively shopping Joakim Soria during the Winter Meetings, reports at least have them listening to offers. And why wouldn't they listen? We all love Jack and the peace of mind he usually brings in the ninth inning. However we have the deepest bullpen we've had in over a decade, full of young, cheap, controllable arms with more on the way from the greatest minor league system in the history of whatever." The Jerry DiPoto Halos Heaven: "Despite speculation around the game that Mike Trout's arrival will squeeze out Peter Bourjos, the Angels view Trout as more of a corner outfielder than a center fielder, according to the source. The club is strongly committed to Bourjos as its long-term answer in center field, believing he'll win multiple Gold Gloves during his career and make strides at the plate." The Terry Smith Twinkie Town: "Nobody is really surprised that the Twins sent Kevin Slowey away. He was often injured and, through no fault of his own, was jerked around by the team. This is a case where both parties have something to gain by splitting up." The Brian Cashman Mike Axisa of River Ave Blues: "Brian Cashman told reporters that he had nothing more than "early conversations" with Mark Buehrle's camp, and they didn't want to go more than two years on the veteran southpaw." The Billy Beane Athletics Nation: "The A's had a great rotation in 2011, but perhaps greater than anything was the depth. In a season that started out with a rotation of Gio Gonzalez, Trevor Cahill, Brett Anderson, Dallas Braden and Brandon McCarthy." The Jack Zduriencik Nate Cohn of Pro Ball NW: "Scott Boras is known for creating sources of 'leverage' to boost offers, and there are tremendous financial incentives to say anything that might increase his payday. If a report leaks about a Boras client, and the report might create such leverage, redflags should fly." The Andrew Friedman Steve Slowinski of DRB: "Some of us here have lusted after Josh Willingham for the past couple of seasons, as he is underrated and well above average offensively." The Jon Daniels Adam Morris of Lone Star Ball: "The Rangers have publicly said they wanted C.J. Wilson back, and I think at the right price, they probably would like to have him back. The "right price," though, wasn't likely to be close to what Wilson was seeking, or close to what he was likely to command in the free agent marketplace." The Alex Anthopoulos Tom Dakers of Blue Bird Banter: "I'm not sure I'd really want Gio Gonzalez, unless he was cheap to get. Pitches in a great pitcher's park in the AL West. His career ERA at home is 3.56 but on the road it is 4.32. But then he is only 25 and controllable for a few years. And pitched 200 innings each of the past two."