MLB Bullets looks forward to six years of puns

I think the title says it all.

• Yu’s on first! Evan Grant explains why the Rangers never seriously tried to re-sign Yu Darvish.
• David Schoenfield looks at what the Darvish signing means for other teams this winter.
• This is interesting, because I haven’t seen it reported elsewhere before. Jon Heyman reports that Theo Epstein called Jake Arrieta and asked him if he would accept the deal the Cubs gave Darvish before finalizing the signing. Arrieta was appreciative that the Cubs would give him that opportunity, but said no. Anyway, Heyman then looks at what’s up next for Arrieta and where he might sign. Heyman also reports that Darvish wanted to sign with either the Cubs or the Dodgers.
• That Nationals are emerging as a possible destination for Arrieta.
• The Twins have made a trade inquiry with the Rays about Chris Archer. Archer meets the Twins need for a top starter at a reasonable salary, but whether they can offer the Rays what they want for him is the issue. The Rays want Max Kepler, for one. La Velle Neal reports that the chances of the Twins signing Arrieta are “remote.” (h/t CBS Sports)
• Speaking of the Rays, multiple teams have inquired about pitcher Jake Odorizzi.
• The Orioles have asked the Astros about the availability of pitcher Colin McHugh.
• David Schoenfield thinks that if free agent J.D. Martinez is really “fed up” with the Red Sox, here are some other teams that might be interested in him.
• One of the teams Schoenfield suggests in the Mariners. In fact, Jay Jaffe writes that the Mariners should be spending money to contend now.
• Marlins president Derek Jeter said that the Marlins would not have been competitive in 2018 even if they had signed both Darvish and Arrieta. Several people have pointed out that is nonsense and that they would have been a likely Wild Card team had they signed both of the top two pitchers on the market.
• Jeter also says he won’t attend Marlins games at Yankee Stadium because it will be too “awkward.” As Blake Schuster writes, attending Marlins games at Marlins Park might end up being pretty awkward too.
• Grant Brisbee thinks one team should just sign all the remaining free agents and build a superteam. Or at least most of them.
• Matt Snyder wonders which free agents, would go back and accept their qualifying offer if they had the chance. You kind of have to be wondering what Lance Lynn and Greg Holland were thinking when they turned down the QO.
• Buster Olney wonders if the Indians quiet offseason is a sign that the team cannot financially support a perennial contender. (And on a personal note, it’s good to see Olney finishing his pieces with “And today will be better than yesterday.” again.)
• Mike Veeck, son of former Indians owner Bill Veeck, says that he’s glad that Chief Wahoo is going away and that his dad would have supported it going away too. Chief Wahoo was first adopted by the Indians while Bill Veeck owned the team.
• Cliff Corcoran has a brief look on how each team got their nickname.
• Anthony Castrovince has one question for each team as they head into Spring Training.
• Good news. The kidnapped mother of Pirates catcher Elias Diaz has been rescued.
• Doug Mittler has a look at all six new managers in 2018.
• Joel Sherman releases his annual “50 Most Interesting People in Baseball” list.
• Kate Morrison muses about the comeback attempt of Tim Lincecum.
• Congratulations to Puerto Rico, who won their second-straight Caribbean Series.
• And also congratulations to the Brisbane Bandits, who became the first Australian Baseball League team to win three straight titles after defeating the Canberra Cavalry.
• Now that Shohei Ohtani is in MLB, Sung Min Kim has the best six MLB-prospects from the three big Asian leagues.
• Michael Clair argues that Reds outfielder Adam Duvall should be considered among the best defensive outfielders in the game.
• Mets pitcher Zack Wheeler is injecting himself with a bone growth drug to try to avoid injuries.
• Bruce Miles has a look at former Cubs catcher Blake Lalli, who is the new manager of the Kane County Cougars, the Midwest League affiliate of the Diamondbacks.
• John Axford signed a minor-league contract with the Blue Jays, so he shared an old photo of him as a kid wearing Blue Jays pajamas.
• This is a really good story about a former Cubs farmhand Ryan Flaherty, who ended six years as a utility player for the Orioles when he signed a minor league deal with the Phillies. Dan Connolly points out that Flaherty’s underwhelming career is proof that Major League Baseball is really, really hard. Flaherty is a better baseball player and a better athlete than probably anyone you’ve ever known. He’s still barely good enough to play major league baseball.
• Bob Klapisch writes about former Mets legend Buddy Harrelson, who is battling Alzheimer’s.
• I get to include a soccer story as Diamondbacks pitcher Archie Bradley joined the drum section to cheer on Phoenix Rising FC.
• And finally, I don’t know why I’m including this story. It’s about dogs and the Westminster Dog Show. Tim Tebow isn’t a real baseball player. But it’s pretty funny, so you’ll probably read it. Grant Brisbee interviewed Tim Tebow about picking the winners in the Dog Show and about his love of dogs in general. Tebow is a Rhodesian Ridgeback owner, and those are good dogs. They’re all good dogs, right?

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster.