• This week Braves’ manager Fredi Gonzalez stated that youngsters Jonny Venters and Craig Kimbrel could split the closing duties in 2011, just as Rafael Soriano and Mike Gonzalez did in 2009.  Last season, Kimbrel burst on the scene and to say the least, was absolutely filthy.  In just 20 2/3 innings, Kimbrel recorded 40 strikeouts, which for those of you keeping score at home is a ridiculous 17.4 K/9.  He also racked up four wins and a save along the way, and allowed just a single earned run.  If he can repeat his success, Kimbrel could very well become a household name in 2011.

• The Cleveland Indians cleared catcher Carlos Santana to resume all baseball activities, and he will be ready for the start of Spring Training next week.  In 2010, Santana’s eye-opening rookie campaign came to an abrupt halt after he suffered a hideous knee injury on August 2.  Considering that the switch-hitting catcher posted slashes of .260/.401/.467 last year in 192 plate appearances, the fact that he’s been cleared significantly increase his fantasy value.  I’m really excited to see what this guy can do over the course of a full, healthy season.

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• Splashing Pumpkins takes a look back at some of the more notable home runs hit by the San Francisco Giants in 2010 thanks to information provided by Hit Tracker.  With sluggers like Pat Burrell, Aubrey Huff, and Pablo Sandoval, you will never guess who owns the year’s biggest bomb…

• These days I feel like most of us have forgotten how good Grady Sizemore was from 2005-2008.  Over those four seasons, Sizemore appeared in three All-Star games while playing in 639 of 748 possible games for the Cleveland Indians.  But after several injuries – the most recent being a microfracture in his knee – Sizemore has only played in 139 games over the last two seasons.  Now in the last year of his contract, Craig Calcaterra speculates whether the Indians will pick up his $8 million option for 2012.

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On Wednesday night, co-host Clint Evans from Diamond Hoggers and I were back at it with 2011’s first episode of The Baseball Show.

Topics include:

• Our thoughts on Roberto Alomar and Bert Blyleven’s selection to the Hall of Fame.

• We weigh in on some of the other notable players – Barry Larkin, Fred McGriff, Jeff Bagwell, and Edgar Martinez – who either came up just short in the voting or failed to receive adequate support.

• We talk about the man (kind of), the myth, the legend…Bryce Harper.  Could we see Harper in D.C. in 2011? Probably not, but we entertain the idea and suggest several hypothetical scenarios.

• Who was the winner in the Matt Garza trade? We explore his concerning 2010 performance as well as assess the slew of prospects that were shipped off by the Cubs.

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The Chicago White Sox continued to add to their bullpen on Saturday, signing left-hander Will Ohman to a two-year, $4 million contract. At 33-years old, Ohman is coming off one of the best seasons in his 11-year career. While splitting time between the Baltimore Orioles and Florida Marlins, Ohman was 0-2 with a 3.21 ERA. He also notched 43 strikeouts and issued 23 walks in 42 innings.

Over the years, Ohman has evolved into strictly a lefty specialist, primarily due to his ineffectiveness against right-handed hitters (.264/.360/.400 career). However, his ability to retire left-handed hitters is true, as evidenced by his career line of .208/.298/.348.

The White Sox have now signed two relief pitchers – Jesse Crain being the other – to multi-year deals headed in 2011. If it were any other organization, this wouldn’t concern me nearly as much (although I’ll always have a problem supporting a decision to over-invest in relief pitching). But with a track record that includes Scott Linebrink’s undeserving and generally nauseating 4-year/$19 million contract in 2007, I have no choice but to reserve all expectations.

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• In case you have been suffering from an ongoing, post-New Years delirium, Alfredo Simon is the main suspect in a murder case in the Dominican Republic.  It appears that he will be tried for manslaughter after firing a shot that both killed his cousin and wounded his brother (I know, wow).  There are two different stories that have surfaced: Simon fired a celebratory New Year’s Eve shot in the air that somehow inflicted the before mentioned damage; he fired a warning shot to disrupt an argument between two women.  Apparently the “magic” bullet that Simon fired struck his brother in the arm before lodging in the chest of his now deceased cousin.  By no means am I an expert in ballistics, but something sounds fishy about how this all went down.  If only we had some Zapruder-esque footage to fuel our suspicions.

• We have also come to learn that both Miguel Tejada and Julio Lugo – fellow Dominicans – have offered to pay for Simon’s legal fees, which will surely be enormous if he intends to fight the case in court.  If Simon is indeed charged with manslaughter, he will face up to 30-years in prison and will more than likely serve as the set up man for Ugeth Urbina on the Latin American Correctional Team.

• On The Black, a blog dedicated to the New York Mets, posted a video of David Wright that features the third baseman discussing what it is like to play for the team that he grew up rooting for.  He also touches on why he loves baseball and offers a quote that I really like, “Every game is like Saturday morning Little League, going out there and playing with your friends.”

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