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If the Rangers are to sign Shohei Otani by Christmas, there's much to do in little time

Related Topics: Shohei Otani

After a year worth of hype and speculation, the Shohei Otani sweepstakes figures to begin in earnest soon.

Like next week.

Of course, like all good baseball stories, it first begins with negotiation and ratification.

The MLB Players Association has set Monday as a deadline for signing off on changes to the posting system that have already been agreed to, in principal, by owners and the Nippon Professional Baseball League of Japan. If that happens - and you never say anything is a sure thing where MLB and the MLBPA are involved - owners could ratify the agreement in a conference call, perhaps before Thanksgiving.