Nick Johnson

Newsday's Ken Davidoff is reporting that the Yankees have agreed to a one-year deal with Nick Johnson worth around $5.5 million.

The deal is pending a physical, but is pretty much done.

This is a great move for the Yankees. While Nick Johnson will be limited to a designated hitter role on this Yankees team, I see that as a good thing. There is no doubt that this will increase the odds that he can stay healthy for the entire season.

The San Francisco Giants, like most teams, won't find the answer to all their 2009 problems via the free agent waters. There are no magic bullets available this year—even the biggest catches aren't panaceas.

Matt Holliday and Jason Bay are wonderful Major League Baseball players, but neither is capable of singlehandedly turning around an anemic offense.

Bay was arguably surrounded by more hitting talent during his days in Pittsburgh than would accompany him in 2010 under the fog, and we all saw how ferocious those clubs were.

Nick Johnson, the player that came to the Marlins in the final minutes of the trade deadline, is now a free agent. 

To obtain Johnson, the Marlins had to send starting pitcher Aaron Thompson to the Washington Nationals.

Nick is known for his patience at the plate. During his '09 season he posted a .426 on base percentage—which leads all free agents.

He may not have very good power numbers, but if a team needs consistency he provides it.

During his 35 games with the Marlins, he walked 36 times and was consistently on base every time Hanley was at the plate.