Obviously I haven’t posted on here for a few weeks, a happy result of the vacation time I had to use up before year’s end. But before the year’s truly over, I wanted to recognize the last day for the Cincinnati Post. It’s a long way from Detroit, and it’s sure a long way from the days when newspapers were king in Cincinnati (newspapers all over the country, really), but it’s the place that was willing to give me my first shot at a daily newspaper, and I owe it more than a passing mention for that.

I had a part-time stringer position there while I was in college, rarely with a byline and often having to answer the phones. The pay wasn’t good, the hours could go late, and my Friday nights were spent in a newsroom instead of going out. I studied for exams in the newsroom, and I spent the night before my college commencement covering a minor-league hockey playoff game. But for someone who had only been working with weekly papers to that point, it was invaluable — not just because it was a daily paper, but because it was an underdog daily paper with plenty of good reporters and editors from which to learn.

The roster of baseball writers to come out of the Post is impressive. Jerry Crasnick covered the Reds there opposite Rob Parker of the Enquirer during the Marge Schott era, when every so often a writer would be banned from the dining room as punishment for a story. Another Post alum was Jeff Horrigan, who I only knew from the phone when he would call in to make sure his stories arrived but whom I read without fail. John Donovan over at SI.com covered the Bengals there back when the Bengals made the Lions look good. Tony Jackson, Joe Posnanski, Jay Marriotti (OK, I’m mixing in columnists here), Paul Daugherty, Marc Lancaster, Todd Archer, David Fleming, all of them came through the Post at one time or another, as did too many others to mention. They had their share of good sports editors, too, including one who convinced me that Bowling Green, Kentucky could actually be a good newspaper job.

No more. The end was something everybody saw coming. Heck, it might’ve been one reason why the Post sent along so many writers through the system. But it’s a sentimental day nonetheless, and not just because it means another one-paper city. Here’s their final package if you’re interested.

He’s now a free agent available to any club that wants him. Cabrera, Dontrelle, Robertson and Thames were all tendered contracts, continuing the negotiation process with them and leaving arbitration open.

They agree to terms on a one-year contract. That’s the first deal so far, and it could well be the only one announced today ahead of tonight’s deadline. Others, like Miguel Cabrera, Dontrelle Willis, Bobby Seay and Nate Robertson, are expected to be tendered contracts. No read yet on what will happen with Marcus Thames and Chad Durbin.

He’s back at the minor-league level where he made his mark before his ill-fated tenure managing the Tigers in 2002. The Astros named him manager of their Double-A affiliate at Corpus Christi, the same level where he managed the Erie SeaWolves to an Eastern League division crown in 2001.

In hindsight, it’s amazing to look back on that Erie club, which was filled with so many highly-touted prospects: Eric Munson, Nate Cornejo, Omar Infante, Mike Rivera, Andy Van Hekken, Kenny Baugh. None of those guys are still with the Tigers. The only player from that club still in the organization is Fernando Rodney, who pitched just four games there. I have no idea how Pujols will do back in the minors after all these years, but it has to be more eventful than his four years as a coach in San Francisco, where his only public role was seemingly to shake Barry Bonds’ hand when he was at first base.

Dave Dombrowski told reporters Monday evening that he’d be "content" to leave Nashville with the team Detroit currently has, including the pitching staff. Still, they’re scheduled to meet with the agent for Octavio Dotel tonight, and they’re expected to the same with LaTroy Hawkins’ agent at some point while they’re here. With the market on both relievers not going downward, however, it’s uncertain how fruitful those meetings could be.

The Tigers also had what Dombrowski considered to be more trade discussions than usual, at least preliminary ones.

Checking in from the gigantic Opryland hotel in Nashville, where they give you a hotel map as soon as you check in. It’s possible that downtown Detroit is easier to navigate than this place.

Not much going on just yet, but we’ll see what happens. One would expect to hear the Tigers inquire about some relievers on the free-agent market, maybe check into some trade talks, but they rarely ever get anything done early in these meetings. Most of their doings go on in the final day or two once they go around. Or in last year’s case, they didn’t finalize a deal with Jose Mesa until three days after the meetings ended.

As far as a fifth starter and free-agent pitchers coming off of surgery, there hasn’t been much talk leading into the meetings. As of late last week, they hadn’t inquired about Kris Benson, but that might not mean much before he throws for scouts on Dec. 17 or 18 in Arizona. Nothing yet on Matt Clement, either.