Mariners Moose Tracks, 12/15/17: Rule 5 Draft, Shohei Ohtani, and Fernando Rodney

Good morning everyone and happy Friday! The Winter Meetings are officially over and we must now brace ourselves for the boring part of the offseason. There are still some pieces that will surely move before the season starts. Yu Darvish is the big fish remaining in free agency, and there are some other interesting names there and in the trade market. We’ll see what happens there. Meanwhile, here’s what we do know.

In Mariners news...

• The Mariners claimed 1B Mike Ford in the Major League round of the Rule 5 draft yesterday. The team also claimed a couple of players in the minor league stage.
• The M’s made some changes in the higher levels of their organization.

• Jon Heyman has some musings on Seattle.

• However, Jerry Dipoto says the roster is largely done and warns fans not to expect any major moves before spring training arrives.

Around the league...

• The MLB is being very careful about the whole Shohei Ohtani situation.

• Any #youth who might be reading should check this out!

• People around baseball initially thought the Angels were close to a deal with Chase Headley, but perhaps they’ll go in a different direction.

• The Cardinals have signed right-hander Luke Gregerson as relievers continue to fly off the shelves.
• The Fernando Rodney Experience moves to Minnesota.

• Ohtani remains a major health risk for the Angels and will be something to look out for going forward, notes Travis Sawchik.
• Fish Stripes wonders what will happen to Christian Yelich now that the rest of the team’s studs are gone.

Anders’ picks...

• This is so cool.