Where do the AL East contenders sit right now compared to each other? Let’s compare them by looking at how their current depth charts stack up. At each position (including starters one through five and three bullpen slots for closer, lefty/righty setup men and the rest) the three teams will be ranked according to the likely productivity of their current situation. We’ll assign points on a 3-2-1 scale for each team and total them up at the end.

At a press conference this evening the Blue Jays finally announced the deal that has been mentioned for several days: Troy Glaus and prospect Sergio Santos join the Jays from the Diamondbacks in exchange for Orlando Hudson and Miguel Batista.

While we wait for the Troy Glaus trade press conference, here's a new place for our baseball musings.

Boxing Day in Toronto gave us nothing but sadness, thanks to a senseless shooting on Yonge Street and this news of Jeff Reardon. Today cannot help but be better.

So what baseball related gifts did people get?

A grand total of 67 major league ballplayers have been born on Dec. 25, the date traditionally designated as Christmas Day around the world. And what do you know -- one of them was even named "Jesus," though he went by his middle name professionally, All-Star 2B Jesus Manuel "Manny" Trillo.

But alas for this (brace yourselves) "Christmas Trillo," he won't even get the starting nod at the keystone for the All-Born-on-Christmas-Day Hall of Names roster ...

Ir'a Christmas Eve (or by the time some of you read this, Christmas Day or Christmas Past), and that means time for Bauxites everywhere to gather 'round the (Hot Stove enflamed) fire and join in a round of Christmas Carols, Hall of Names style.

Yes, mid-1980s journeyman catcher Steve Christmas (Reds, White Sox, Cubs, 1983-1986), even with a career OPS+ of 27, is going to get used a lot in this holiday "card," but ideas also came from the 2003 Holiday Chatter thread, not to mention the (2004-05) New Year's Wishes from Baseball's Hall of Names foray. But for now, let's all just join together and sing ...

Everyone seems to think it's a done deal but the specifics are lacking. Troy Glaus appears to be headed for the great white north while Orlando Hudson and Miguel Batista are headed south. There could be a prospect headed to Toronto; the cash side of the deal is unknown; and whether Glaus had to have his deal sweetened is also unknown.

By Fawaz.

Every time I read a suggestion that Orlando Hudson is headed to Team X for John Q. Slugger, one name pops into my mind: John ‘Hot Rod’ Williams. I vividly recall my cursing out loud (to the chagrin of a 10-year-old Fawaz’ parents) and the ensuing swoon in my fandom following the announcement that the Phoenix Suns had finally acquired the big man that was going to put them over the top. I didn’t know much about the guy. He was 6’11” and I had his basketball card, though I never looked at it. I knew everything about the guy he was traded for. He was an all-star, went for 16-5-4 in 1994-95 and knocked down threes whenever Charles Barkley felt moved to pass the ball. (He was in town last season doing the colour commentary for the Suns broadcast and before the game he started knocking down long three-balls in his suit… one-handed.) He was Thunder Dan Majerle.

Yesterday, we looked at starting pitching over the last 100 years through a basic statistical lens. Today, we work on tools for measuring the quantity pitched in evaluating a pitcher's career.

JP's checking his offseason list (2 arms, 2 bats)
He's checking it twice (3 down, 1 to go)
We're gonna find out who's naughty (Hudson?) or nice (Hill?)
Troy Glaus is coming to town??

Don't worry, that's not a prediction -- it's a challenge. It is, if you will, today's Question of the Day ...

The winter meetings are done. Christmas is near, and it's time for Hall Watch to get rolling in earnest again. We will begin with the starters. Before we tackle the big questions such as "is Roger Clemens better than Walter Johnson?", we need some tools. The first step is getting a statistical handle on starting pitchers over the last 100 years.

As expected the Jays tendered contracts to all arbitration eligible players yesterday. But more interestingly Mike Rutsey reports that the Jays have an interest in free agent catcher Bengie Molina.

As the title might imply, this is a Spring Training thread. Not about the players, non-roster invites and positional battles, but about the actual activity itself. Readers with Florida experience are welcomed to join in with advice and anyone with questions about attending exhibition baseball is welcomed to pose them here -- odds are, someone can answer them!

So if you have questions about Spring Training in Dunedin (or other Florida locations), questions about the area or if you just want to know the best way to get there and simply enjoy baseball, read on.

Two months into the baseball off-season and I am starting to get restless, itchy, looking for my baseball fix. I am not talking about baseball in the big sense of the word, I am talking the game, on the field, seeing a nasty change-up, a beautifully turned double play, a runner turning a double into a triple, an Ichiro gun to third, a Rolen laser to first, Mariano mowing them down, you get the picture.