FanHouse Max Ramirez

The Daily Jolt is a dose of baseball reality every weekday morning.

It will never be the World Cup or the Olympics. We will not rush to a computer every March to print out brackets like we do the minute the NCAA Tournament field is announced. But just because there is little chance of the World Baseball Classic becoming a transcendent international event on par with the most recognized ones on the sports calendar does not mean the event has little intrinsic value.

The WBC has plenty of haters -- no surprise there since it was an idea drummed up by Bud Selig -- but just two days into the North American portion of the tournament, it seems like they just aren't paying attention.

From now until the regular season begins, Fantasy Flings is where you'll find interesting story lines about your favorite teams from Spring Training. If there is a position battle, a nagging injury, a comeback story or a youngster making a surge for the "big club" we'll let you know the fantasy implications.

Los Angeles Angels
It turns out the Angels only rented Mark Teixeira for a few months. Now it's time to find a replacement. Kendry Morales tore up the Dominican Winter League to the tune of a .404 batting average with eight home runs and 29 RBI in only 26 games. He's also 6-17 through six Spring Training games. Nobody expects, or even asks, Morales to fill Teixeira's shoes, but the Cuban defector could blast 18 to 20 home runs and bat upwards of .280 if given full-time at-bats. He's a great late round fantasy draft flier in mixed-leagues and should be grabbed in AL-only leagues of any depth.

The Daily Jolt is a dose of baseball reality every weekday morning.

Though it is being greeted largely with yawns of indifference, the World Baseball Classic is less than 24 hours away. OK, so maybe it is a far cry from Opening Day. Maybe we aren't sure how to feel about a tournament that's supposed to crown a true world champion, but is unforgiving to the point that two losses equal elimination. Maybe we don't know what to make of a tournament that is supposed to be chock full of national pride and pageantry, but is an afterthought to many of our favorite stars.

The Red Sox have been among the most active teams in free agency since the calendar turned to 2009, inking the likes of Takashi Saito, John Smoltz, Brad Penny, Rocco Baldelli and Mark Kotsay to deals in the new year. Those are good signings for an organization as deep as the Red Sox, but a major hole at catcher remains on the big league roster.

Boston has already signed Josh Bard to a non-guaranteed deal this winter, but unless it is willing to hand a significant portion of the catching duties to an untested backstop like Dusty Brown or George Kottaras, it is going to need another catcher.

Longtime backstop and team captain Jason Varitek is still a free agent, but, at least for now, the Red Sox seemed resolved to pursue other options in an effort to get younger behind the dish.

Footprints in the Snow is FanHouse's look at the paths to be forged by MLB teams this winter as they look ahead to 2009.

When you're the Texas Rangers, and you have a grand total of one playoff win in 47 years of existence, there's little place to go but up. Thanks to GM Jon Daniels' dilligent work in the draft and in last year's Mark Teixeira and Eric Gagne deals, that's just the direction in which they're headed.

There are a lot of things to feel good about in Arlington these days, actually. The Rangers had the best offense in the American League last year and could conceivably be better in 2009. The farm system is overflowing with talent and almost certainly one of the five best in the game. There's even optimism about the return of Nolan Ryan as the team's president.

If you're looking for a club that could make a Rays-like rise in the near future, the Rangers might be the best candidate. The question isn't if, but when they make their presence felt, and the answer to that query will determine in part how aggressive Texas is this winter.

According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer's Dennis Manoloff, the Indians have acquired Kenny Lofton from the Rangers in exchange for Max Ramirez, a catching prospect currently playing in Class A:

Lofton was an Indian for nine seasons (1992-2001). He is the Indians' all-time leading base stealer and a fan favorite. Lofton, 40, is hitting .303 with seven homers and 23 RBI for the Rangers. He is making $6 million this year.

Ramirez, 22, plays for Class A Kinston in the Carolina League. He is batting.303 with 12 home runs and 62 RBI.

Even at 40, it's clear that Lofton still has the skills to be a solid leadoff man -- he's posted a .380 OBP with 21 steals so far this year. Of course, Grady Sizemore is holding down center field as well as the top of the order in Cleveland, but Lofton could still get into the lineup almost every day, perhaps shifting over into a left field platoon with Jason Michaels.