Padres Acquire Justin Huber

According to Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star, the Padres have acquired Justin Huber from the Royals for a player to be named later. He's a good candidate to see time in left field for San Diego since he's out of options. Backing up Adrian Gonzalez at first probably isn't an option given Tony Clark's presence. The 25 year-old gets a .255/.322/.420 projection from PECOTA and .279/.334/.437 from ZiPS. Baseball America spoke of a team official who compared Huber to Matt Diaz. It's a decent low-risk acquisition for Kevin Towers once again.

Odds and Ends: Papelbon, Bonds

Your collection of links and rumors... Interestingly, Pirates GM Neal Huntington put out a statement for Pirates' fans. He explains why the Pirates have been inactive this winter, and I agree with the logic. This team doesn't need to be wasting money on mediocre free agents. Justin Huber is out of options, so he'll either make the Royals or end up elsewhere. Athletics Nation paints a picture in which the A's are buyers at this year's trade deadline. A parallel universe with a healthy Rich Harden, if you will. The Red Sox are exploring a multiyear deal for Jonathan Papelbon,...