NL Central news & rumors: Baez, Marmol, Artwork, Olivo, Jocketty, Steroids

The NL Central seems like a relatively quiet place this off-season. The Cubs have been active, I think. The Reds, Cards, and Brewers still look like they're in holding patterns (for largely different reasons), and the Pirates seem like they've been desperate to want to do something but haven't. Am I wrong or is this just skewed optics? Here's all the latest.

Cubs

• Javier Baez Heads Cubs Non-Roster Spring Invite List - Bleed Cubbie Blue
  The Cubs added several players from within the organization to their spring roster, handing out more non-roster invitations.

• A History Of Cubs Scorecard Artwork: 1916-1981 - Bleed Cubbie Blue
  During the Wrigley ownership of the Chicago Cubs, intricate and clever artwork adorned the covers of the team's Wrigley Field scorecards. Here are images of all of them (save two), and a bit of the history behind them.

• Carlos Marmol Accused Of Abuse In Dominican Republic - Bleed Cubbie Blue
  A Spanish-language news website reported that the Cubs closer has been accused of abuse by a 24-year-old woman.

Reds

• Reds sign Miguel Olivo - MLB Daily Dish
  The Cincinnati Reds have signed free agent catcher Miguel Olivo.

• Reds avoid arbitration with Chris Heisey, Alfredo Simon - MLB Daily Dish
  The Cincinnati Reds have reached one-year agreements with right-hander Alfredo Simon and outfielder Chris Heisey to avoid arbitration.

• Savvy Jocketty Beats Every Other GM to Signings of Future All-Stars - Red Reporter
  A pair of low-risk signings add to the Reds' already deep depth. Can I say "deep depth?" I just said it.

• Red Reposter: Reds take chances with Chapman - Red Reporter
  Jerry Crasnick expresses some doubts about moving Aroldis Chapman to the rotation.

Cardinals

• Cardinals, Marc Rzepczynski avoid arbitration - MLB Daily Dish
  The St. Louis Cardinals have avoided arbitration with left-hander Marc Rzepczynski.

• St. Louis Cardinals links: Unidentified Lou Brock, Ronny Cedeno, and more - Viva El Birdos
  In Saturday's VEB Monitor, Ronny Cedeno's value is diminished now that he won't be able to hit .300 against the St. Louis Cardinals.

• The St. Louis Cardinals' Ballpark Village is nearly under construction. Do you care? - Viva El Birdos
  Will Ballpark Village make your Busch Stadium experience any better?

• Matt Holliday's steroid stance: 162-game suspension for a first-time infraction - Viva El Birdos
  "The St. Louis Cardinals' stealth-star outfielder will probably get more attention for this radio interview about steroid suspensions than he will being one of the best hitters in the National League. Whatever works."

Brewers

• Milwaukee Brewers sign Alfredo Figaro - MLB Daily Dish
  The Milwaukee Brewers have signed right-hander Alfredo Figaro to a minor league contract.

• The Brewers Should Just Sign Everybody - Brew Crew Ball
  An argument for claiming orphaned free agents Michael Bourn and Kyle Lohse, not necessarily in that order.

• A Few Inches On Pinch Hitting - Brew Crew Ball
  The Brewers used a lot of pinch hitters in 2012, but can we learn anything from their results?

Pirates

• Pirates avoid arbitration with James McDonald and Neil Walker - MLB Daily Dish
  The Pirates have avoided arbitration and agreed to 1-year contracts with Neil Walker and James McDonald.

• Minor moves: White Sox, Pirates, Red Sox - MLB Daily Dish
  Three right-handers -- Andrew Brackman, Kyle Waldrop, and JD Durbin -- have signed minor-league deals with three different clubs this week.

• The Pirates' Low-Risk, High-Upside Gambles - MLB Daily Dish
  Players like Jerry Sands, Francisco Liriano, and Travis Snider are the kind of reclamation projects with enough upside to be worthy of the risk.

• MLB draft picks aren't like bags of tomatoes - Bucs Dugout
  "This isn't a particularly big deal, but I've recently seen a number of slight variations of what I'd consider some peculiar logic, in a question in MLBTR's new chat, in a recent Ken Rosenthal..."

• Pirates place 4 in MLB.com top 100 prospects list - Bucs Dugout
  Gerrit Cole, Jameson Taillon, Alen Hanson and Gregory Polanco have landed in MLB.com's list of the top 100 prospects. Cole ranks No. 9, and there are four right-handed pitchers (Dylan Bundy,...