Well sorry about the delay folks. For once the forecasters got it right. We got 10 inches of snow on top of 2 inches of ice (both setting a new record for the ENTIRE month of November). This town does NOT deal with snow well. The word snow comes out of the weatherman’s mouth and there are 10 accidents just on principle alone. Anyway, we’re still basically snowed in but I’m back in the saddle and ready to fire up The Rumor Mill again. What better way to do that than a quick roundup of everything going on to get you ready for the Winter Meetings which I’m sure will give me plenty to write about. Hold on, cause here we go.

The Signings:

• The Chicago White Sox signed a one year deal with Scott Podsednik for $2.9 million. The Sox are still said to be pursuing trades, namely for Chone Figgins, however, so this could just be a sign and trade.
• The New York Mets have reached an agreement with their free agent pitcher Tom Glavine. While Glavine had been considering a return to Atlanta, the Braves were apparently not able to find the funds to make that happen. The Mets on the other hand, apparently had an extra $10.5 million laying around.
• The Cleveland Indians have taken two big strides to bolster their bullpen. The Indians signed the left handed Aaron Fultz from the Phillies and the right handed Roberto Hernandez from the Mets. The Tribe’s ‘pen needed some experience and what better way to do that than sign a 42 year old pitcher?
• The San Francisco Giants have re-signed their second baseman, Ray Durham. Durham had been injury prone throughout his career with the Giants, however, in his contract year last year, Durham managed to stay healthy by focusing on strength and conditioning and it paid off. Durham hit a career best 26 home runs and was rewarded by the Giants with a two year, $14 million deal.
• The Seattle Mariners have signed Jose Guillen to a one year $5.5 million contract.
• The San Francisco Giants have reportedly reached a deal with free agent
  outfielder, Dave Roberts. Roberts will apparently be following his
  former skipper, Bruce Bochy, to the Giants and will be given a three
  year $18 million contract.
• The Giants also re-signed Rich Aurilia to a two year deal.

and now… The Rumors:

• The St. Louis Cardinals are apparently taking another look at free agent pitcher Jason Schmidt. After signing second baseman Adam Kennedy and pitcher Kip Wells at what are, at least for this offseason, considered bargain prices, the defending champs apparently have some extra money to spend.
• The Dodgers and Red Sox apparently met last night to discuss a possible deal involving Manny Ramirez and Brad Penny.
• The Chicago Cubs are still courting Julio Lugo as well as Kenny Lofton and Jason Schmidt.
• Toronto Blue Jays center fielder, Vernon Wells, looks to be poised to cash in big in next year’s free agent market, a fact that could prompt the Jays to trade Wells while his value is high.
• The Seattle Mariners are reportedly shopping first base slugger, Richie Sexson.
• The Pittsburgh Pirates are still looking for a left handed bat and might end up having to trade for one rather than pull someone off the steadily shrinking scrap heap.
• Interest in pitcher Miguel Batista seems to be growing with the Phillies, Cubs, and Cardinals all linked to the pitcher.
• A deal involving the Cubs’ Jacque Jones and the Rockies’ Jason Jennings has reportedly been discussed.
• Oh, and shocking as it may be, interest in Barry Bonds is apparently quite low. I seem to remember saying something like that a while back…

Well, that should catch everyone up on the current events. The Winter Meetings are currently underway and as always I’ll keep you up-to-date on all the Rumors and Rumblings from across baseball.