TheMinnesota Twinsconfirmed Monday they signed utility man Marwin.

Minnesota Twins TwinsOFFICIAL: #MNTwins sign Marwin Gonzalez to 2-year deal. WiiRwFDMGNESPN's Jeff Passanreported Friday the deal is worth$21 millionJon Heyman of MLB Network first broke the news that an agreement had been reached.Landing Gonzalez didn't come easy http://www.indiansfanproshop.com/authentic-b.j.-upton-jersey , though. Heyman reported in early November that the 29-year-old had a "monster market" and that "practically every team" had interest.After spending the first seven seasons of his big league career with the Houston Astros, this will be the first time he has changed uniforms.Gonzalez enjoyed a breakout campaign in 2017, posting career highs in average (.303), on-base percentage (.377), home runs (23), doubles (34) and RBI (90). That strong performance played a key role in helping the Astros win their first World Series title that year.While he wasn't able to duplicate those numbers last year, he still put up a respectable stat line.Gonzalez hit.247with16home runs,25doubles,threetriples and68RBI in145games for Houston in 2018. Not only did he produce runs at the plate, but he also provided value with his versatility on defense, having played every position except pitcher and catcher. He has played shortstop more than any other position, though.Dan Hayesof The Athletic reported Thursday that Minnesota had explored athree-year deal for the versatile free agent. Ultimately http://www.indiansfanproshop.com/authentic-b.j.-upton-jersey , though, the two sides reached an agreement on a shorter contract.Signing Gonzalez gives first-year managerRocco Baldelli options to work with. Third basemanMiguel Sano has yet to make it through an entire big-league season healthy and even struggled so mightily last year that he was demoted to the minors鈥攁nd all the way to Single-A. Having Gonzalez available to shift over to the hot corner could turn out to be a valuable insurance asset.This is just the latest move made by the Twins this offseason in an effort to boost their offense. Minnesota previously signed six-time All-Star Nelson Cruz to fill their designated-hitter vacancy and 2017 All-Star Jonathan Schoop to handle second base. John Mozeliak watched how the St. Louis Cardinals were galvanized following a managerial change midway through last season, then made a spirited run toward the playoffs that came up just short.He decided a couple of pieces were all it would take to push the Cardinals over the top.Welcome to St. Louis, Paul Goldschmidt and Andrew MillerThe longtime Diamondbacks slugger arrived in one of the marquee trades of the offseason, and one of the top relievers in baseball arrived as a free agent. Together with a returning core that made huge strides under skipper Mike Shildt, the Cardinals believe they have the pieces to contend with the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers in what should be a stacked National League Central.“In the offseason, we feel like we did the things we needed to put a successful club out on the field,” said Mozeliak, the team’s president. “We knew we just couldn’t have a stagnant offseason. We knew we had to make some changes to our club because even though we felt we had a good team last year, we still weren’t good enough.”Goldschmidt got off to a slow start last season but went on a tear in June, and he wound up with the same kind of consistently stellar numbers that he put up with the Diamondbacks.He joins a lineup that includes Marcell Ozuna, Dexter Fowler Danny Salazar Jersey , Yadier Molina and Paul DeJong, who combined for 76 homers last season. Throw in third baseman Matt Carpenter and the Cardinals have the ability to score plenty of runs with very few swings of the bat.“I’m ready to go. Let’s do this,” said Carpenter, who is moving from first base to clear space for Goldschmidt. “I mean, I’ll play wherever to accommodate that.”The starting rotation took a hit this spring when Carlos Martinez experienced shoulder trouble that could keep him out well into the season. But with Miles Mikolas coming off a breakout year, Jack Flaherty posting huge strikeout numbers and veterans in Michael Wacha and Adam Wainwright, there is enough depth in the starting rotation to keep the Cardinals in games.Miller and the bullpen are expected to take it from there.There are plenty of questions, of course. Will outfielder Dexter Fowler bounce back, especially after a less-than-inspiring spring? Can the young arms live up to the hype? Will the Cardinals continue to respond to Shildt now that he’s in charge for a full season?The season opener is March 28 at Milwaukee.MORE ON DEXFowler is expected to start in right field, but he might be on a short leash after hitting .180 last season. He dealt with injuries and is finally healthy, but his Grapefruit League numbers hardly reflected it.“We’re clearly committed to Dex,” Shildt said. “He’s in a real good spot.”OTHER REBOUNDSOzuna arrived in St Louis on the heels of back-to-back All-Star selections http://www.indiansfanproshop.com/authentic-b.j.-upton-jersey , but he produced a solid if unspectacular season. He hit .280 with 23 homers and 88 RBIs, but they weren’t near the 37 homers and 124 RBIs he produced in his final season in Miami.FLAHERTY’S ARMOne of the unsung heroes of last year’s run was Flaherty, who struck out 29 percent of opposing batters during his rookie year. The only other rookies to log those kinds of numbers have been Dwight Gooden (1984), Hideo Nomo (1995) and Kerry Wood (1998). Now, can the 23-year-old Flaherty translate those numbers into wins? He was 8-9 with a 3.34 ERA in 28 starts last season.NEW FACESGoldschmidt and Miller are a pretty good place to start. Both will shoulder huge expectations, a byproduct of their track records of success. The 34-year-old Miller was an All-Star two years ago in Cleveland, and he had a 4.24 ERA in 37 appearances last season.“I think with the additions of Paul and Andrew and really thinking about the health of the club as well and the depth we have on the pitching side and our everyday club, we feel like we’re going to be competitive team,” Mozeliak said.ROOKIES TO WATCHKeep an eye on right-hander Dakota Hudson, who was solid in relief last season. The injury to Martinez coupled with Wainwright’s age could give him an opening in the rotation. Otherwise, his solid ability to induce groundballs will continue to play well out of the bullpen.