The Texas Rangers and Oakland Athletics are nearing a trade centered around relief pitcher Koji Uehara, according to Joe Stiglich of the San Jose Mercury News. Uehara has been in trade rumors for a while now as the Rangers retool their pitching staff for the 2012 season.

Uehara, 36, was acquired by Texas from the Baltimore Orioles during the middle of the 2011 season. His 4.00 ERA with the Rangers isn't great, especially when noting how well he pitched in relief for Baltimore. Upon signing with the Orioles out of Japan in 2009, Uehara began his MLB career as a starting pitcher, but he struggles with some injury issues.

Baltimore moved Uehara into the bullpen full-time in 2010, and he's been dominant in that role since. Over the past two seasons, Uehara has posted a 2.56 ERA in 109 innings with a stunning 140 strikeouts compared to just 14 walks. He doesn't overpower hitters, but the 36-year-old has been extremely effective.

1:58 PM ET: The deal is complete, pending physicals and approval from the commissioner's office, according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. The Pirates will be paying $5 million in 2012 and $8 million in 2013 for Burnett's services, for a total commitment of $13 million, as Kovacevic adds.

1:45 PM ET: One of the young players reportedly being sent to New York in the deal is relief pitcher Diego Moreno, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Moreno, 25, is armed with strong velocity, but he didn't reach Double-A until the end of last season and the lack of acceptable secondary pitches has long been a problem for him.

12:57 PM ET: The deal is done and waiting for MLB approval, according to Ken Rosenthal. The Yankees will pay $20 million and the Pirates will pay the remaining $13 million of Burnett's contract as well as sending two low-level minor league players back to the Yankees. Burnett will take a physical Sunday.

The two prospects in question are still being debated. (twitter 1 / 2 / 3)

11:33 AM ET: Barring any unforeseen antics by supposed mystery teams, the New York Yankees A.J. Burnett trade to the Pittsburgh Pirates is all but a done deal. The two sides will be taking their proposed trade to Commissioner Bud Selig for approval some time later today, according to Buster Olney.

Adam Rubin of ESPN says the reason Selig needs to approve the deal is because of the money involved, which includes the Yankees paying at least $20 million of Burnett's remaining contract.

The exact parameters of the deal are not yet known, but the Pirates are said to be including two marginal prospects in exchange for Burnett:

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Relief pitcher Hideki Okajima failed his physical with the New York Yankees on Friday and likely won't be joining the team going forward, according to David Waldstein of the New York Times. The Yankees signed Okajima to a minor league deal earlier in the offseason but it appears that his stint with the Yankees will be short lived.

Under the assumption that the deal between Okajima and the Yankees is voided because of the physical, he'll return to the free agent market. Obviously that return will come with significant questions about his health, which certainly doesn't help a guy that already struggled during the 2011 season.

Okajima, now 36, made just seven appearances with the Boston Red Sox in 2011, posting a 4.32 ERA over eight innings. He spent most of the year in Triple-A, posting a 2.29 ERA in 51 innings with 48 strikeouts and just nine walks. In the Japanese pitcher's first three years with the Red Sox, Okajima posted a 2.72 ERA over 192 innings.

The Boston Red Sox have announced that long time starting pitcher Tim Wakefield will announce his retirement in Fort Myers later today. The knuckle baller has been considering this decision for a while this off season.

He had said that he wanted to keep pitching but only with the Red Sox, who offered him just a minor league deal, which he declined. Wakefiled was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1988 as a position player, but struggled and converted to a knuckle ball pitcher. The Pirates would later release him. The Red Sox picked him up in 1995 and he has not pitched in another uniform since.

Wakefiled broke the 200 wins plateau this past season and was just six wins away from Cy Young and Roger Clemens as the all time Red Sox wins leader. He struggled for a portion of last season, while he was trying for those 200 wins.

A.J. Burnett trade rumors have been going on nonstop for the last week or so, in case you haven't noticed. In any event, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports tweets that the New York Yankees and Pittsburgh Pirates will complete the deal within a few days, "barring something unforeseen." The Pirates are set to take on $13M of the $33M owed to the right-hander, while the Yanks will get a couple non-roster minor-leaguers in return.

Meanwhile, Raul Ibanez and Eric Chavez are on the Yankees' radar, as the team is looking to add a couple more bats. Yesterday, I named Ibanez on the list of MLB's top five remaining free agents.

According to Roger Mooney of the Tampa Tribune, the Tampa Bay Rays have signed free agent catcher Chris Gimenez to a minor league deal today. The Seattle Mariners designated Gimenez for assignment last week, and he soon elected free agency before the Rays picked him up.

The Mariners re signed Gimenez in December to a major league deal after they had non tendered him. 29 years old, Gimenez has 267 career plate appearances in several MLB stints in the past two seasons.

A 19th round pick by the Cleveland Indians in 2004, Gimenez saw the MLB for the first time in 2009 on June third. He had a total of 75 at batsgame with the Indians before being released and then signed by Seattle last season, where he played in 24 games. He hit .203 in those games, the highest batting average of his career.

He is expected to start out his Rays career in Triple A.

Yoenis Cespedes was thought to be the big-ticket signing, but it may be Jorge Soler, the other Cuban defector, that gets the most interest from teams. Yesterday it was reported the Philadelphia Phillies, among other high-spending teams, were interested in the 19-year-old prospect, and the Phillies general manager confirmed the reports today.

Matt Gelb of Philly.com spoke with Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. about the teenage prospect and the club's interest...

"Our scouts have seen him and we like him," Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said Thursday. "It may come down to where he wants to play and, of course, the money."

In the same piece, Gelb also reports the Phillies "have remained in close contact with Soler and his agents since the young outfielder defected." The New York Yankees and Chicago Cubs are two other teams that will also be in on Jorge Soler, according to reports. When the bidding will start is anyone's guess right now, since Soler hasn't been declared a free agent yet.