On Boxing Day, the pursuit of Masahiro Tanaka finally begins. The 25-year-old Japanese star has officially been posted by his club team, the Rakuten Golden Eagles. So for the new capped fee of $20 million, any one of the 30 Major League teams can get in on the bidding and getting a deal done by 5pm on January 24. Tanaka was a spectacular 24-0 this season with a miniscule 1.27 ERA. He is the same age Yu Darvish was when he was posted two years ago and, like Darvish, wants the challenge of pitching in the Majors. The Blue Jays were in on the chase for Darvish, but to what extent we will never really know. There were rumblings at the time that the Blue Jays barely lost out to Texas and their winning bid of $51.7 million. But Alex Anthopoulos and the organization would never confirm or deny that and in the end, it was felt the Rangers were actually bidding against themselves just to be sure they got Darvish. Texas signed him to a six-year, $60 million deal but if certain conditions are met, the sixth year turns into a player option. So far its been a good investment by Texas. Darvish is 29-18 over two seasons with 401 innings, 498 strikeouts and 169 walks. He was added the American League All-Star roster his first year, and only missed last years mid-summer classic due to an injury. Most scouts believe Darvish to be a better pitcher than Tanaka, who projects by many to be a number 2 or 3 starter, rather than a staff ace. When Tanaka won the Sawamura Award as top pitcher in Japan in 2011, over Darvish, he conceded that although he had slightly better numbers than Darvish in a couple of categories, he said "as a pitcher, Im nowhere near his calibre". The Blue Jays self-imposed five-year limit on contracts is one thing working against them, although Anthopoulos conceded a couple of weeks ago that the Jays might go to six years for the right player. The biggest thing going against the Jays is the desperation of some of those big-name teams that figure to be in on the bidding and the marquee presence of others. The Yankees pitching staff needs an infussion of youth and talent. The Dodgers havent won a World Series since 1988 and Texas has never won one. Boston is in that year-by-year battle for bragging rights and now that theyve won three World Series titles this century to the Yankees two, they arent going to let up now. The Blue Jays may make an offer just to say they did, but Id bet on Texas or the Yankees to be Tanakas ultimate landing spot. A couple of trivia points on Darvish. The first Major League hit he surrendered was to his countryman Ichiro Suzuki and the first home run he surrendered was to Edwin Encarnacion of the Blue Jays on April 30, 2012. Darvish still won that game though, 4-1. Another Babe It was on December 26 of 1919 when the most infamous deal in Red Sox history went down. It was the day Babe Ruth was sold to the Yankees. This is the story of another player who went by the nickname "Babe". Werner Birrer was a reliever and occassional spot starter for parts of three seasons in the 1950s with the Tigers, Orioles and Dodgers. Hes better known for his years pitching in the International League, in Buffalo, the city where he was born. He ultimately made it into the Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame and was a valued member of the community as a teacher and a coach. Babe Birrer passed away back in November at age 85. He had one day in his career where it all came together and earned him the sobriquet "Babe". On July 19 of 1955, Birrer came on in relief in the sixth inning to try and protect a 5-4 Tigers lead over Baltimore. Not only did he pitch four shutout innings of relief to earn his second of four career saves, Birrer slugged a pair of three-run homers to propel the Tigers to a 12-4 victory over the 0s. What was so special about that? Well, those were the only two home runs and only six runs batted inn of Birrers entire career. As far as anyone knows, he is the only Major League player in history to cram all of his home runs and RBI production into just one game. For that one day, that one game, Werner Birrer was called "Babe" by his teammates for the rest of his career. Oddly enough, the two relievers who surrendered those home runs to Birrer, George Zuverink and Art Shallock, are both still alive and amongst the 100 oldest surviving Major Leaguers. Shallock is 89 and 245 days, Zuverink 89 and 128 days. Just a little known page in the book of Tigers history. Nike Air Max 180 Nederland . TSN 1290s Jordan Cieciwa, Big Marv and Toby are here to give their predictions on who will leave with the belt and who will take some of the other key bouts on the card. Johny Hendricks vs. Nike Air Max 270 Sale Dames . James Erskine said Tuesday that Thorpe was "quite sick" in a Sydney hospital but dismissed media reports the swimmer might lose the use of his left arm. "Hes not in the intensive care," Erskine said. http://www.airmaxkopennederland.com/uitv...classic-bw.html. Brooks replaces right-hander Yordano Ventura, who left his last outing with a sore elbow. Ventura is expected to miss one start. Brooks has made one relief appearance for the Royals this season, allowing six runs in two innings in a May 3 loss to Detroit. Nike Air Max 720 Nederland . Catch all the action on TSN starting at 10:30pm et/7:30pm pt. Toronto won at Denver and Utah, but lost in Portland and Sacramento. The Kings loss was the most recent game for the Raptors. Nike Air Max Tailwind 8 Kopen . The 27-year-old forward has informed the Leafs that he will be unable to play in Monday nights home game against the Columbus Blue Jackets.RENTON, Wash. -- When it was clear Marcus Trufants time with the Seattle Seahawks was over following the 2012 season, he was given a message by general manager John Schneider and coach Pete Carroll on his way out. If it became apparent that Trufant was ready to retire from the NFL, they wanted him to do it as a member of the Seahawks. Trufant got that opportunity Thursday, officially retiring from football after signing a one-day contract with Seattle. "It (the offer) says a lot about them, it says a lot about their character, it says a lot about the organization itself because they didnt have to do it," Trufant said. "They chose to do it and Im very grateful for that. They just extended the hand and that just shows what kind of people they are, and I appreciate it." Trufant spent his entire NFL career with the Seahawks, with the exception of the 2013 training camp when he was with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Trufant was released at the end of August and remained out of football during the 2013 season. Being a dad shuttling around his daughters and starting in on new business ventures during his season out of football solidified Trufants believe that he was finally done with the game. "It was just time, man. Just to be home with my family, all of my girls are getting bigger so its just good to be home," Trufant said. "I had a nice run, and I have no complaints." Trufant retires as one of the few to become a star without ever really leaving home. He was a prep star at Wilson High School in nearby Tacoma, Wash.dddddddddddd then a college standout at Washington State and finally a first-round pick of the Seahawks in 2003. Instead of having to fly across country for his introductory news conference after being drafted, Trufant took a phone call from then-coach Mike Holmgren, jumped in the car and drove 45 minutes up the freeway. That was the start of his association with the Seahawks. Trufant started 125 of 136 games played during his time in Seattle. He finished with 21 career interceptions and was voted to the Pro Bowl in 2007. He spoke about his career for 20 minutes Thursday, reading from notes typed out on his phone the night before. The Seahawks auditorium was packed with friends and family. Trufant was joined on stage by his parents, his wife and his brothers, Desmond and Isaiah, both cornerbacks in the NFL. Isaiah now plays for Cleveland, while Desmond is entering his second season with Atlanta. Carroll was there as well, along with former teammates Richard Sherman, Kam Chancellor, soon-to-be Hall of Famer Walter Jones and Isaiah Thomas of the Sacramento Kings. The fact all three Trufants were in NFL camps last August at the same time, playing the same position, brings a special sense of pride for the family. "He laid the path out for me," Desmond Trufant said. "I seen exactly what I had to do, what not to do, how to carry yourself on the field, off the field. Just completely set the right path for me. He made it a lot easier for me to get where I am now." ' ' '