Chris Bosio chose to remain with the Milwaukee Brewers as an advanced scout under new pitching coach Rick Peterson.  Milwaukee has generally relied upon technology and video to gather information on upcoming pitchers, especially pitchers the team has not faced before.  After the Crew struggled against some rookie pitchers this past season, the organization opted to go an alternate route for 2010.

San Francisco removed left-hander Noah Lowry from the organization's 40-man roster, making him a free agent.  Lowry has battled arm injuries over the past couple of seasons, but is only two years removed from a 3.92 ERA in his last big league season.  If you are reminded of Mark Mulder, you are not alone.  Noah would certainly be on Milwaukee's radar for a minor-league deal.

Rich Hill attempted to return to prominence in 2009 with the Baltimore Orioles, but struggled to a 7.80 ERA in 57.2 innings.  He could elect to become a free agent instead of returning to the Orioles organization.  His velocity remained consistent, which will allow him to latch on with another organization next year.  The issue was the 6.24 BB/9 walk rate.  If Rich Hill can find a semblence of the command he had when posting a 3.92 ERA with the Cubs in 2007, he could be a very useful relief pitcher for a big league squad.

The Philadelphia Phillies granted Jack Taschner free agency, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America.  Taschner displayed absolutely no command once again on the mound in 2009, compiling a hideous 6.14 BB/9 walk rate while seeing his strikeout rate plummet to 5.83 K/9 (by far the lowest of his career).  The Milwaukee native played college ball for UW-Oshkosh, so a Triple-A deal with his hometown club is not out of the question.

Veteran reliever Doug Brocail will test the free agent waters this offseason after Houston declined his $2.85MM option for 2010.  The right-hander had multiple injuries that sidelined him this past season, but the rotator cuff strain and shoulder strain are the most worrisome.  If he is cleared over the offseason, Brocail will surely latch on with a big league bullpen.  He is two years removed from a 3.05 ERA in San Diego, but struggled to a 4.58 ERA (7.23 FIP) with the Astros in 2009.

Former Brewer catcher Chad Moeller is expected to resign with the Orioles, despite Baltimore declining his $850K option for 2010.  Moeller supposedly bonded with rookie phenom Matt Wieters and had a positive impact on his development.

GM Brian Sabean and the San Francisco Giants still believe Freddy Sanchez is a quality major league player and signed him to a two-year extension yesterday.  The former Pirates second baseman only managed a .295 OBP after making the move to the West Coast midseason.  He remains a second baseman with a high batting average, extremely low walk rate, and above-average defense.  Despite his offensive ineptitude, San Francisco will shell out $6MM per year for the next two seasons.

Houston resigned veteran infielder Geoff Blum to a one-year, $1.5 million deal with an option for 2011.  Blum should provide the organization with some stability on the left side of the infield, as Miguel Tejada is expected to leave for free agency this offseason.  Without Blum, the Astros would be looking at rookie Chris Johnson or utilityman Jeff Keppinger (who profiles better at short) as the starter at third.

**For those of you who are curious, Geoff Blum owns a career .290 batting average against the Milwaukee Brewers -- including a .304 average in 2009.**