Dice-K pays dividends

When the Red Sox stunned the baseball world two years ago by bidding $51.11111111111 million for the rights to negotiate with Scott Boras and Daisuke Matsuzaka, it was an investment in more than just talent. It was about branding the Red Sox in Japan, and evidence of that strategy might be the fact that Junichi Tazawa is expected to select the Red Sox, even though they didn't offer the most money.

Although Dice hasn't exactly fulfilled the lofty expectations he brought to the United States, he's still a legend in his own country, and surely Tazawa (I think we'll call him Taz) would love to come out of the pen to relieve his fellow countryman.

Phillies: No problems with Chase Utley's surgery; Phils think he'll be ready before late May, which has been the worst-case scenario. Oh yeah, Pedro Feliz had surgery too. I've been forgetting to mention. He should be ready around Christine's birthday (late February).