Throughout January and February, we're reviewing offseason MLB transactions that have fantasy implications, and we're going team-by-team. This isn't quite has pretty much turned into Hot Stove Daily. The focus here is limited. We're only looking at trying to focus on ownable fantasy players who've found new employers, but it's difficult sometimes.

Chicago White Sox

Over the past three months, the White Sox have behaved as though they're trying to punish those of us who write preseason team reports. They've really had a complicated offseason, full of trades, signings, imports and rumors. There are position battles ahead and moves yet to be made.

In terms of actual winning and losing, none of Chicago's winter transactions will mean much if A) Carlos Quentin is limited by the wrist injury, B) Gavin Floyd and John Danks can't repeat their exceptional '08 performances, and C) Jim Thome and Paul Konerko are truly cooked. Alexei Ramirez will need to be great again, too. And presumptive

Throughout January and February, we're reviewing offseason MLB transactions that have fantasy implications, and we're going team-by-team. This isn't quite like the Hot Stove Daily. We're only focusing on ownable fantasy players who've found new employers.

Cleveland Indians

The Indians clearly improved during the offseason, sketching in a few blank spaces on the roster. But the team's success in 2009 will depend more on the answers to these questions:

1) Can Travis Hafner be great again? And if he can't, is Matt LaPorta ready to step in?

2) Will Cliff Lee deliver another Sabathian season? And if he doesn't, will he pitch like it's 2005 or 2007?

3) What's next for the young corner outfielders, Ben Francisco and Shin-Soo Choo?

Thankfully this isn't a team preview, so we don't actually have to address those issues. Please note the italicized ground rules above. (If we were expected to consider those questions, our responses would be 1) no and yes; 2) no and more like 2005; 3) they'll

Tim Lincecum and Johan Santana are very close in terms of their Yahoo! ADPs (21.6, 16.7) and their preseason ranks (1, 2). You're probably not going to be disappointed with either starter. None of us are pessimistic about these guys. Two experts discuss the merits of each pitcher below, then a Web poll will settle the issue scientifically...

Behrens says: If there is such a thing as a reliable fantasy ace, then Santana is it. In each of the past five seasons, he's started 33 games, pitched 215 innings, struck out 200 batters and collected 15-20 wins. His highest single-season ERA as a starter is 3.33; his lowest ERA is last year's 2.53.

But as he enters his age-30 season, there's talk that Santana is in decline. His strikeout-rate last year was his lowest since 2001 (though he still finished with 206 Ks), and his walk-rate was his highest since 2003. These details would concern me if Johan hadn't been so completely dominant in the second half. Over the final two months of the season,

Throughout January and February, we're reviewing offseason MLB transactions that have fantasy implications, and we're going team-by-team. This isn't quite like Hot Stove Daily, though. The focus here is limited. We're only looking at ownable fantasy players who've found new employers.

Kansas City Royals

Kids today might not believe it, but there was honestly a time when the Royals were very, very good. From 1976 to 1985, Kansas City won seven division titles, two American League pennants, and one World Series. They had six 90-win seasons during that stretch (and another in 1975, when they finished second to Oakland). Those Kansas City teams had few weaknesses.

In recent years, of course, the Royals are a punchline. They've been a sub-.400 team in five of the last 10 seasons. In 2008, they narrowly avoided a fifth straight last-place finish. This is not exactly the golden age of Kansas City baseball.

Still, if you have a diverse fantasy portfolio, you're going to own a few Royals.

Throughout January and February, we're reviewing offseason MLB transactions that have fantasy implications, and we're going team-by-team. This isn't quite like Hot Stove Daily, though. The focus here is limited. We're only looking at ownable fantasy players who've found new employers.

Minnesota Twins

If we were to literally follow the rules of this feature and only review transactions with fantasy implications, there would be almost nothing to say about the Twins. Here's what Minnesota has accomplished so far this offseason:

• Retained the services of infielder Nick Punto and DH Jason Kubel. They were signed to two-year deals with team options for 2011. Punto is a career .252/.319/.332 hitter with 15-steal speed; Kubel has modest power (20 HR in '08) and no speed. These guys aren't going to be drafted in public mixed leagues.

• Signed 31-year-old relief pitcher Luis Ayala to a one-year, $1.3 million deal. Ayala delivered the worst fantasy ratios of his career last year (5.71 ERA, 1.45

That's right, Fantasy Baseball is back, and so are the blog leagues. If you're interested in competing against one of the Yahoo! fantasy experts, please contact me via the email link over on the right. We'll set up the leagues very soon.

Here are the formats:

• Brandon Funston, AL-only head-to-head

• Scott Pianowski, mixed roto

• Brad Evans, mixed head-to-head points league

• Andy Behrens, NL-only roto

• Matt Romig, mixed head-to-head

If you're one of those delusional smack-talkers who hammered us during the mock draft, please step forward. The experts basically dominated the football blog leagues. Let's see if the baseball community can put up a fight.

Do not post your username or email address in comments section, please.

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Update, Feb. 21: OK, that's quite enough emailing. We'll send the invites shortly.

The mock continues. You should be familiar with the set-up by now: Six fantasy experts, 12 teams, one round per day, public league settings. We haven't been especially bold so far. OK, there was some boldness in that last round, mostly from Brad.

For earlier results, follow the links: Round 1, Round 2, Round 3, Round 4, Round 5.

Jonathan Papelbon, Red Sox – Round 6, Pick 1. I can't guarantee he'll be better than Mariano Rivera, Joe Nathan, Brad Lidge, Francisco Rodriguez or Joakim Soria, and generally I'm a penny-pincher when it comes to saves. But when you're positioned at the end of a serpentine draft, it's never a bad idea to start a run. If at least four closers go in the next 20 selections, I'll feel justified paying top dollar for a one-category player. That said, when I'm in the middle slots, it's all about saves on a budget. (Scott Pianowski)

C --empty--, 1B Mark Teixeira, 2B --empty--, 3B Garrett Atkins--, SS --empty--, OF Nick Markakis, Matt Kemp, UTIL --empty--, SP Tim

The mock continues. You should be familiar with the set-up by now: Six fantasy experts, 12 teams, one round per day, public league settings. We haven't been especially bold so far. If you're looking at Mock Draft Central ADPs, the big departures are Lincecum at 13 (vs. ADP 26.3), Holliday at 27 (vs. 13.9) and Quentin at 29 (vs. 36.7).

For earlier results, follow the links: Round 1, Round 2, Round 3, Round 4.

Larry Wayne Jones, Braves 3B – Round 5, Pick 1. Third base is more scarce than it used to be this year, and Chipper is arguably one of the three best hitters in the game on a per at-bat basis. Yes, he's getting up there in age, and you have to assume he'll miss 30-40 games, but even so, you can expect 25-90-.325 with four or five stolen bases. (Chris Liss)

C --empty--, 1B --empty--, 2B --empty--, 3B Chipper Jones, SS Hanley Ramirez, OF Carlos Lee, Ichiro Suzuki, UTIL --empty--, SP Roy Halladay, RP --empty--

Nate McLouth, Pirates OF – Round 5, Pick 2. McLouth's coming off a 26/23