I have been wondering if the World Baseball Classic means really anything to a lot of baseball fans. In light of the Hot Stove, and what players would go where, there has been very, very little talk of the upcoming World Baseball Classic.

The 2009 rendition will take place between March 5th and 23rd at various venues in North America along with Asia, and the championship round will take place at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, Ca. Right now, it looks like Baltimore's Melvin Mora and Cesar Izturis will be participating for Venezuela, while Nick Markakis declined due to family obligations -- mainly the upcoming birth of his child.

So far, the American players include Red Sox second baseman -- and reigning American League MVP -- Dustin Pedroia, Braves catcher Brian McCann, Angels pitcher John Lackey and Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter. Others include Mark DeRosa, Kevin Youkilis & Ryan Braun. Meanwhile, stars like Ryan Howard, Josh Hamilton, Cole Hamels, and Brad Lidge have passed on it.

Been out all night, but I nearly fell out of the chair when I read this from the Sun's Peter Schmuck.

Ok. This guy, I will admit has had a solid major league career; however, his best years might be behind him. He was horrible in 2008, and at this point -- he's simply a low salary, high reward guy who you hope has something left in the tank.

Happy New Year, and let's hope as we start off, it won't the same as the last.

There does not seem to still be going much on with the Orioles or signings in Major League Baseball; however, the Big Unit is now in San Francisco and may perhaps be the least 300 game winner for a long while if he can stay healthy.

Well, what do I hope for with the Orioles in the new year? Um, perhaps a few more wins for starters; however, being in the AL East and the shape the team is in versus the rest of the division, that's a tall order.

The money that was going for Mark Teixeira should be spent on pitching, not put away for another day. If we are going after reclamation projects -- find a diamond in the rough like the Kyle Lohse of 2008 -- not necessarily the Mark Hendrickson's of the world (though they have a need). Then again, bring bodies -- lots of 'em -- as evidened by last year, you can never have enough arms.

If you think the Orioles have it bad -- can you imagine what's going on in Detroit? The Lions became the first ever 0-16 history as they lost to the Green Bay Packers, 31-21. They fought, but in the end, they could not salvage a win.

Sports is a very important fabric of a community, and to see the Lion this bad -- especially considering what is going on with the Big Three auto companies, what's happened on the political scene up there, and the conditions of the city in general -- is nothing short of depressing.

I hope things get better in the Motor City sooner rather than later.

I was about to head to sleep, but Ian from Sox and Dawgs sent me an email via a report from Roch Kubatko on MASNSports.com that the Orioles have come close to an agreement with hurler Mark Hendrickson.

Here's a bit more from the Orioles.com Spencer Fordin about the pitcher.

With the Baltimore Orioles seemingly in need a catcher -- a starter, backup, or otherwise -- while phenom Matt Wieters may start the year in Triple-A to get some seasoning, there have been talks of former Oriole Gregg Zaun taking the role.

However, there has been another name of late who has joined the fray -- Ivan "Pugde" Rodroguez.

Baltimore Sun blogger and columnist Peter Schmuck brought up this topic in a recent blog post, as he says: no comments

Reading the information super-highway the other day, I caught that Sammy Sosa -- a member of the 600 home run club -- was looking for a return to the Major Leagues.

The slugger who excited the world of baseball with his home run hitting ability, unabashed love for the game, and his infectious smile brought joy not only to Cubs fans in the 1990's, but to the world of baseball.

Furthermore, many credit him and Mark McGwire for rekindling the interest of the sport to fans and admirers alike; however, all the goodwill he had built up went pretty much down the toilet after his appearance on Capitol Hill years ago.

It's the day after Christmas, and not much is going on with the Orioles; however, it looks like the Orioles are going after pitching -- probably closer to the stop-gap/mid-level variety.

According to Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun, the Orioles are after Japanese hurler Kenshin Kawakami -- who is also being targeted by the Red Sox, Braves, Dodgers, Twins, Giants and Brewers.

At this point, with the reality of Mark Teixeira not being signed by Baltimore, the question that many have asked is what will happen to Brian Roberts?

As most of us know, the Baltimore Orioles are in the rebuilding stage and have has eleven straight losing seasons. Moreover, the team plays in the AL East, and with the Rays as defending division champs, and with the powerhouse Red Sox, along with the retooled Yankees, one must think the organization has the task of climbing Mount Everest.

Andy MacPhail -- despite the misgivings of a few fans -- I think has done a solid job in rebuilding the team. There's probably going to have a painful decision to be made with Roberts, and I think he will be traded before his contract is up.

Ian of Sox and Dawgs and I taped our weekly show this afternoon that aired on the Fantasy Sports Channel at Blog Talk Radio.

We talked about the Mark Teixeira signing and it's impact on the game as well as gave our thoughts.

Lenny Melnick of Melnick and Greco Fantasy Sports stopped by at the end of the show as well. You can check it out by following the link provided at the end here. [The Hits Keep Coming - 12.24]