[JMobile]

What you guys think of this brawl?

[Cross]

Great bat flip, terrible reaction by Asdrubal.

[EmpireMaker]

The Yankees are certainly hoping they’ll be able to re-sign Aaron Judge, but until the AL MVP makes his decision, the Yankees are considering several other free agents and trade targets. In addition to some names already linked to New York in past reports, the New York Post’s Jon Heyman writes that the Yankees have checked in on the likes of Justin Verlander, Carlos Rodon, Brandon Nimmo, Cody Bellinger, Michael Conforto, and their own incumbent free agents Jameson Taillon and Andrew Benintendi.
In general, it’s pretty commonplace for the Yankees (or pretty much any team, particularly the biggest spenders) to at least get in contact with agents early in the offseason in order to gauge interest, or get a sense of asking prices for any particular player. As such, some of these players might not necessarily be at the top of the Yankees’ target list, and Heyman notes that some could be options only if Judge signs elsewhere. For instance, though “the Yankees seek multiple outfielders,” Heyman doesn’t think the Bronx Bombers would both re-sign Judge and also add Nimmo on a pricey contract. Likewise, the Yankees aren’t expected to bid at the top of the shortstop market, unless a Judge departure gives them new reason to explore Carlos Correa, Trea Turner, and company.
Since Anthony Rizzo has already been re-signed to solidify the first base position, New York’s offseason plan on the position player side looks pretty set — retain Judge, then add a less-expensive second outfielder (Conforto or Bellinger are both likely candidates for one-year contracts). Should an opportunity arise to move an infielder like Josh Donaldson, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, or perhaps even Gleyber Torres, the Yankees could pounce, but the presence of Oswaldo Cabrera, Oswald Peraza, and yet-to-debut star rookie Anthony Volpe gives the Bombers some flexibility in figuring out the infield mix. DJ LeMahieu’s toe injuries will also factor into the front office’s next decisions.
If Judge did leave the Bronx, of course, any number of new backup plans could be put into place. However, a Judge departure may only throw the position-player scenarios into flux, since Heyman writes that “the pitching pursuits are said to be ’on different tracks’ ” than the Yankees’ interest in position players. Though naturally adding any high-profile player has an overall impact on a roster in terms of salary or luxury-tax figures, it makes sense that adding a new pitcher isn’t necessarily tied to Judge’s situation, since Judge’s return has a bigger chain reaction on the lineup as a whole.
Putting a new starter into the rotation is a cleaner fit, especially if that new addition is an ace like Verlander or Rodon. While the Cy Young Award winner has been a Yankees target in the past, Heyman reports that “the Yankees’ confidence level on [signing] Verlander is low,” so he might also be something of a Plan B option for the club.
The Yankees also might not necessarily be seeking an ace, since Gerrit Cole and Nestor Cortes are already in the fold. Since Luis Severino, Frankie Montas, and Domingo German have their share of question marks, adding a reliable third-starter type like Taillon would help solidify the starting five. Kodai Senga (another pitcher garnering interest from the Bronx) is perhaps something of a wild card, given how it isn’t known how well he can make the transition from NPB to the major leagues. Senga’s stuff could make him a front-of-the-rotation arm might off the bat, or he might end up being more suited to the middle or back of a pitching staff.

[jrgum3]

The Yankees are certainly hoping they’ll be able to re-sign Aaron Judge, but until the AL MVP makes his decision, the Yankees are considering several other free agents and trade targets. In addition to some names already linked to New York in past reports, the New York Post’s Jon Heyman writes that the Yankees have checked in on the likes of Justin Verlander, Carlos Rodon, Brandon Nimmo, Cody Bellinger, Michael Conforto, and their own incumbent free agents Jameson Taillon and Andrew Benintendi.
In general, it’s pretty commonplace for the Yankees (or pretty much any team, particularly the biggest spenders) to at least get in contact with agents early in the offseason in order to gauge interest, or get a sense of asking prices for any particular player. As such, some of these players might not necessarily be at the top of the Yankees’ target list, and Heyman notes that some could be options only if Judge signs elsewhere. For instance, though “the Yankees seek multiple outfielders,” Heyman doesn’t think the Bronx Bombers would both re-sign Judge and also add Nimmo on a pricey contract. Likewise, the Yankees aren’t expected to bid at the top of the shortstop market, unless a Judge departure gives them new reason to explore Carlos Correa, Trea Turner, and company.
Since Anthony Rizzo has already been re-signed to solidify the first base position, New York’s offseason plan on the position player side looks pretty set — retain Judge, then add a less-expensive second outfielder (Conforto or Bellinger are both likely candidates for one-year contracts). Should an opportunity arise to move an infielder like Josh Donaldson, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, or perhaps even Gleyber Torres, the Yankees could pounce, but the presence of Oswaldo Cabrera, Oswald Peraza, and yet-to-debut star rookie Anthony Volpe gives the Bombers some flexibility in figuring out the infield mix. DJ LeMahieu’s toe injuries will also factor into the front office’s next decisions.
If Judge did leave the Bronx, of course, any number of new backup plans could be put into place. However, a Judge departure may only throw the position-player scenarios into flux, since Heyman writes that “the pitching pursuits are said to be ’on different tracks’ ” than the Yankees’ interest in position players. Though naturally adding any high-profile player has an overall impact on a roster in terms of salary or luxury-tax figures, it makes sense that adding a new pitcher isn’t necessarily tied to Judge’s situation, since Judge’s return has a bigger chain reaction on the lineup as a whole.
Putting a new starter into the rotation is a cleaner fit, especially if that new addition is an ace like Verlander or Rodon. While the Cy Young Award winner has been a Yankees target in the past, Heyman reports that “the Yankees’ confidence level on [signing] Verlander is low,” so he might also be something of a Plan B option for the club.
The Yankees also might not necessarily be seeking an ace, since Gerrit Cole and Nestor Cortes are already in the fold. Since Luis Severino, Frankie Montas, and Domingo German have their share of question marks, adding a reliable third-starter type like Taillon would help solidify the starting five. Kodai Senga (another pitcher garnering interest from the Bronx) is perhaps something of a wild card, given how it isn’t known how well he can make the transition from NPB to the major leagues. Senga’s stuff could make him a front-of-the-rotation arm might off the bat, or he might end up being more suited to the middle or back of a pitching staff.

If I were the Yankees I would try to sign one of the big name free agent pitchers. They need serious pitching help and have so for years. Judge is great but you need pitching to win in October.

[JAKEPEAVY21]

Rangers going strong after Rodon by all accounts...looks like they will be a major player this hot stove season.

[cincinnatikid513]

angels acquired gio urshela from twins for minor leaguer, kinda like that trade for angels

[Otters27]

That just like the juco player who tackled that guy rounding 3rd

[JMobile]

Padres are interested in Xander Bogaerts. They can put Tatis in the outfield.

[Cross]

Padres not afraid to spend,gotta admire Preller.

[EmpireMaker]

Makes No sense to me.

The Pirates have agreed to a one-year deal with veteran first-baseman Carlos Santana pending a physical, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN. It’ll pay the Octagon client $6.725MM, per Jon Heyman of the New York Post. It’s the largest guarantee the Pirates have given to a free agent since inking Daniel Hudson to a two-year, $11MM deal before the 2017 season.
It’s an intriguing move for the Pirates as they look to slowly work their way back to contention after a lengthy rebuild. Santana is the third first-base/DH option they’ve acquired this off-season, following their trade for Ji-Man Choi and claim of Lewin Diaz.
Santana, 36, spent last year with the Royals and Mariners, slashing a joint .202/.316/.376 with 19 home runs over 506 plate appearances for a wRC+ of 102, a couple of ticks above league average. While the numbers certainly don’t leap off the page, Santana did post the lowest BABIP of his career and hasn’t seen much shift in his walk or strikeout rates. Santana could also be one of the biggest benefactors of the shift restrictions that’ll come into play next season, as no one faced a shift more often than he did (98.3% of the time).
It’ll be the fifth major league team Santana has suited up for. He debuted for Cleveland back in 2010, the first of eight seasons he’d initially spend with the franchise. Santana regularly posted 20+ home run totals, combining power with strong on-base skills. His best year was 2013, when Santana finished 15th in AL MVP voting on the back of .268/.377/.455 line.

Santana inked a three-year, $60MM deal with the Phillies prior to the 2018 season, but after just a year Cleveland re-acquired him via a ten-day stint in Seattle. His return to Cleveland proved successful, as Santana hit 34 home runs, won a Silver Slugger and earned his first trip to the All Star game.
That was his last dominant campaign though, and his final year in Cleveland in 2020, and the following seasons in Kansas City and Seattle have brought about wRC+ marks of 99, 82 and 102. While his average has taken a huge dip in recent years, he’s continued to walk at a strong rate and post solid power numbers. His HardHit% and exit velocity remain in line with his peak numbers, so there certainly seems to be enough to suggest Santana could experience a bit of a bounce back in 2023.
That’s certainly what the Bucs will be hoping for, but it won’t take much for them to improve their first-base output in 2023. Pittsburgh first-basemen combined for -3.0 fWAR in 2022, so the addition of Choi and Santana addresses that. Santana was worth three Outs Above Average at first in 2022, with Choi worth two and the pair will likely split time there and at DH in 2023. Choi’s struggles against left-handed pitching could mean he sits in those matchups while Santana mans first and Pittsburgh gives another hitter a game at DH.
Beyond his production at the plate, Santana will be a valuable veteran presence in a young clubhouse. The Pirates have brought through a number of prospects they hope will form the foundation of their next contending team in recent years, including Ke’Bryan Hayes, Oneil Cruz and Roansy Contreras. There’s plenty of young talent there with more expected to crack the big leagues in 2023, so having a veteran mentor in Santana around can only help the Bucs’ young core.
The $6.725MM guarantee is modest by MLB standards, but significant for Pittsburgh. It makes Santana the third highest paid Pirate for 2023, behind Hayes and Bryan Reynolds, and takes their projected 2023 payroll to $54MM, per RosterResource. That falls about $5MM shy of their 2022 mark and it’ll be interesting to see where the final figure lands for next season. A veteran starter on a similar deal to Jose Quintana’s last season seems likely, while the team could do with a low-cost catcher to bridge the gap until top prospects Endy Rodriguez and Henry Davis are ready to debut.

[jrgum3]

Padres are interested in Xander Bogaerts. They can put Tatis in the outfield.

That would be an interesting addition. I like Xander he always seems to wind up on one of my fantasy teams and he usually produces when he's healthy. I think Tatis would do just fine as a utility type player he's athletic enough to play any of the OF positions.

[cincinnatikid513]

says rays are interested in brandon nimmo which is a joke because tampa doesn't want to spend money so that's not going to work

[JAKEPEAVY21]

Padres not afraid to spend,gotta admire Preller.

Preller is not the one spending the money, Peter Seidler is the owner and is willing to open up that pocketbook.

[Otters27]

I'm excited to see how #1 pick Matt Holliday's son does

Holliday is a good dude

[JMobile]

White Sox looking at Clevinger and Twins at Rodon.

[EmpireMaker]

Over the past few years Bryan Reynolds’ name has come up frequently in trade talks, but as of yet no move has materialized. There’s no indication such a move will come to fruition anytime soon either, but the Pirates’ star is sure to be a regular name on the rumor mill again this winter. Indeed, Jon Morosi of MLB Network reported earlier this month that Reynolds was a popular name among GMs, but that a trade was considered unlikely.
There’s a reason Reynolds has been the target of a number of teams, he’s an elite switch-hitting outfielder, who’s shown strong power, on-base and contact skills and is under team control for three more seasons with a team in the midst of a lengthy rebuild. On the flip side, the Pirates, it seems, believe that rebuild will be complete within the next three years, so they don’t feel any need to move him. That’s not to say they wouldn’t trade him if the right offer came along, but it does mean they can set a high asking price and wait and see if any team is willing to meet it.
The Pirates are coming off a second-straight 100-loss season, but they are seeing a number of their top prospects make their way to the upper minors and big leagues. Oneil Cruz and Ke’Bryan Hayes are young building blocks, while the likes of Endy Rodriguez, Henry Davis, Liover Peguero, Quinn Priester and Michael Burrows aren’t too far away. There’s no guarantee that core can form a competitive team with Reynolds in the next few years, and Pittsburgh’s spending history suggests there’s little chance of them keeping Reynolds once he reaches free agency. As such, there’s solid arguments to be made for and against the Pirates trading their star this winter.
Reynolds, 28 in January, has amassed 12.5 fWAR since bursting onto the scene in 2019. Acquired from the Giants in the Andrew McCutchen trade, Reynolds was called up a few weeks into the 2019 campaign and never looked back. That year, he hit .314/.377/.503 with 16 home runs in 134 games, good for fourth in NL Rookie of the Year voting behind Pete Alonso, Mike Soroka and Fernando Tatis Jr.
He struggled mightily in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, posting a sub-.200 batting average and a wRC+ of just 71. That season proved to be an aberration, as Reynolds returned to his best in 2021, slashing .302/.390/.522 with 24 home runs in 159 games, earning his first trip to the All Star game and finishing 11th in NL MVP voting. The key that season was a significant drop in strikeouts, as Reynolds easily posted a career best mark of 18.4%, down nine percent from a year earlier.
2022 saw an uptick in strikeouts as Reynolds punched out 23% of the time. He wound up with a .262/.345/.461 line with 27 home runs and a 125 wRC+, so it was still a very productive season but down from his best years. It’s possible Reynolds sacrificed a bit of contact for an increase in power (he hit three more home runs in 32 fewer plate appearances), but it’s also worth noting that his BABIP dropped 39 points from ’22 to ’21, and his batting average dropped an almost identical 40 points.
Defensively, Reynolds has received mixed reviews for his work in center field (10 Outs Above Average in ’21 against -7 in ’22) which is where he’s spent most of his career in Pittsburgh, but has tended to grade out much better in left field.
Reynolds is owed $6.5MM in the second year of a two-year deal signed last winter. He’ll then have two further years of arbitration remaining, before reaching free agency at the conclusion of the 2025 season.
So who could be interested? Let’s take a look at a handful of teams that could pursue Pittsburgh’s outfielder this winter, and how their farm system is looking.

• Red Sox: Alex Speier of the Boston Globe reported that the Red Sox’ have expressed interest in Reynolds as they seek a left-handed hitting outfielder. The Red Sox currently have Alex Verdugo, Kike Hernandez and Rob Refsnyder in the outfield, with Jarren Duran as their fourth option. Baseball America ranked Boston’s farm system as the 11th best in baseball, with Marcelo Mayer, Triston Casas, Brayan Bello and Ceddanne Rafaela featuring in the top 100 overall. Both Bello and Casas have MLB experience now, but Pittsburgh would surely want any trade to start with one of those four names.
• Yankees: The Yankees have been linked with Reynolds at various points over the past few years, and their outfield is expected to be an area of focus again this winter. Even if they re-sign Aaron Judge they may well seek a left field upgrade, but if they lose Judge the Yankees will be under pressure to make a big splash. Anthony Volpe, Oswald Peraza and Jasson Dominguez are the big names on the Yankees’ farm, while the Pirates may have interest in Austin Wells as a long-term first base option.
• Marlins: The Marlins have long had interest in Reynolds, and they’re again likely to be looking for outfield additions this winter. They currently have Jon Berti, Avisail Garcia and Bryan De La Cruz in their outfield. BA ranks them 20th best in the game, with Eury Perez, one of the best pitching prospects in baseball, headlining it. Max Meyer is recovering from Tommy John surgery while Jacob Berry is the other top 100 prospect. BA notes that the system lacks depth behind the top guys so a deal may be hard to come by, but if Miami was willing to dangle Perez it’d certainly catch Pittsburgh’s attention.
• Mariners: Seattle is another team that’s had previous interest in Reynolds. Julio Rodriguez is locked in at center and the team just acquired Teoscar Hernandez to play right, but the team could look to move on from Jarred Kelenic in left. Their farm system has already taken a big hit following a series of win-now trades by president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto, but the likes of Emerson Hancock and Harry Ford are exciting prospects, and Pittsburgh would possibly be interested in trying to unlock Kelenic’s potential.

Of course, these are just four possible options and any number of teams could be interested in a player of Reynolds’ quality. Pittsburgh will certainly have a steep asking price, but perhaps a team will blow them away with an offer this winter.

[JAKEPEAVY21]

Still reading about the Padres linked to Bogaerts...interested to see who starts where if that happens.

I feel like Ha Seong Kim earned a starting spot but he could be the odd man out.

[cincinnatikid513]

winter meetings kick off on Sunday, Dec. 4 in San Diego

[Otters27]

winter meetings kick off on Sunday, Dec. 4 in San Diego

Not much time off

[cincinnatikid513]

according to john heyman dodgers are interested in carlos rondon

[EmpireMaker]

The Dodgers have joined the growing list of suitors for four-time All-Star and two-time World Series Champion Xander Bogaerts, according to reporter Marino Pepén. Pepén adds that the Cubs and Twins have also joined Bogaerts’ market, adding to a list that also houses the Phillies, Red Sox, and Padres.
With the departure of Trea Turner, the Dodgers are among the teams looking to secure a shortstop this winter, having recently been connected to the Brewers’ Willy Adames. MLBTR predicts that Bogaerts will receive a seven-year, $189MM deal this offseason, and two of our writers expect that he lands in Los Angeles.
The 30-year-old hit a strong .307/.377/.456 in 2022, witnessing a noticeable drop in power compared to 2021 (23 HRs, .493 slugging in 2021; 15 HRS, .456 slugging in 2022). Nevertheless, Bogaerts posted his fifth-straight season with a wRC+ over 125 and kept his strikeout rate below 19% for the eighth season in a row. Additionally, the nine-year vet posted his strongest defensive season of his career by measure of every publicly available metric (4 Defensive Runs Saved, 4.9 Ultimate Zone Rating, 5 Outs Above Average). Bogaerts’ glove had been discussed as his primary flaw, having been rated as a below-average defender and a candidate for an eventual position change. His strong defensive 2022 season will likely aid his ability to remain at the premium shortstop position, positioning him for a contract near $200MM.
From a financial standpoint, Bogaerts, along with Dansby Swanson, represent cheaper alternatives to Carlos Correa and Turner (both projected to sign contracts worth more than $250MM by MLBTR). Nevertheless, with the recent non-tendering of Cody Bellinger and the decision to decline Justin Turner’s 2023 club option, the Dodgers currently have only $152MM committed to their 2023 payroll, per RosterResource (after finishing the 2022 season with more than $260MM on their books). A Dodgers/Bogaerts deal would push the team up to $179MM — leaving ample room for another potential blockbuster signing.
The Dodgers have also been linked to free agent reliever Alex Reyes, per Juan Toribio of MLB.com. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz had projected the two-time All-Star to receive $2.85MM in his penultimate trip through the arbitration process, but the Cardinals opted to non-tender the flamethrower.
Reyes, who was once ranked as one of the best prospects in all of baseball, has dealt with ailments his entire career. He underwent Tommy John surgery in 2017, tore a tendon in his lat in 2018, and underwent shoulder surgery in 2020. After a healthy 2021 season where Reyes earned All-Star honors while pitching to a 3.24 ERA in 72 1/3 innings with a robust 30.0% strikeout rate, albeit with an extremely high 16.4% walk rate, injuries returned. Reyes would be forced to undergo season-ending shoulder surgery in May, wiping out his entire 2022 season.
Despite Reyes having an unclear timetable to return, the Dodgers have earned a reputation for signing injured relievers to multi-year contracts, with the expectation that the player will perform in the later years of the deal. Additionally, Dodgers’ pitching coach Mark Prior has been highly regarded in recent years for his work, with Los Angeles’ bullpen pitching to the second-lowest ERA (2.87), fourth-highest strikeout percentage (26.7%), and second-lowest walk percentage (7.5%) in the entire league.

[jrgum3]

according to john heyman dodgers are interested in carlos rondon

I hope Rodon goes to the AL. The Rangers or Twins could really use his services. I definitely don't want to see him on the Giants biggest rival or within the same division.

[JMobile]

White Sox looking at Clevinger and Twins at Rodon.

White Sox signed Clevinger. Done deal

[cincinnatikid513]

jose abreu to the astros

well well well

[JAKEPEAVY21]

jose abreu to the astros

well well well

damnit, I was hoping the Padres would get him

[cincinnatikid513]

interesting


he Dodgers are meeting with pitcher Justin Verlander on Monday. Heyman noted the right-hander "would fit their preference" for a marquee name on a shorter deal

[Otters27]

Verlander is aging but. Pitching at dodger stadium may give him an extension

[EmpireMaker]

The Astros have found their new first baseman, announcing agreement Monday evening on a three-year deal with José Abreu. He’ll reportedly receive $19.5MM per season, bringing the total to $58.5MM. Abreu is represented by ISE Baseball.
Abreu, 36 in January, has spent his entire big league career with the White Sox thus far, but it seemed likely as the season was winding down that they were ready to let him switch jerseys in 2023. With many other first base/designated hitter candidates on the roster, such as Andrew Vaughn and Eloy Jimenez, the thinking was that they would let Abreu walk and dedicate their resources elsewhere, which now appears to have come to pass.

Though the Sox were apparently willing to let him walk away, he continues to have excellent results at the plate. In 2022, he seemingly gave up a bit of power for a more contact-oriented approach, but still to great effect. His 15 home runs were the lowest of his career but so was his 16.2% strikeout rate. The result was a .304/.378/.446 batting line that was 37% better than league average, as evidenced by his 137 wRC+.
That was his ninth MLB season, with Abreu posting a wRC+ of 114 or higher in each of them. He got as high as 164 in 2020, winning Most Valuable Player in the American League in that shortened season. Despite the downturn in power this year, he’s been one of the best hitters in the league over the past decade or so. Since his debut in 2014, he has a 139 wRC+ for his career, with only 11 hitters posting a higher such number in that timeframe. Given his generally solid work at the plate but relatively older age, MLBTR predicted him to secure a contract of $40MM over two years, or $20MM per season. He was ineligible to receive a qualifying offer since he had already been given one earlier in his career.
The Astros were excellent in 2022, winning 106 regular season games and then storming through the playoffs to their second World Series title. First base was actually one of the few weak spots on the roster, as Yuli Gurriel suffered through a down year at the plate. After hitting .319/.383/.462 in 2021, he slumped down to .242/.288/.360 this year. The club acquired Trey Mancini at the deadline to try to bolster the position but it didn’t really work out as he hit just .176/.258/.364 after the deal. Both players reached free agency at season’s end, leaving a vacancy for Abreu to step into. This signing potentially brings Gurriel’s tenure in Houston to an end after seven seasons, unless he’s willing to return in a lesser role as a pinch hitter and occasional designated hitter.
The Astros recently parted ways with general manager James Click amid reported disagreements between him and owner Jim Crane. It seems Crane is in no rush to replace Click, taking over the baseball decisions and seemingly content to continue doing so into the new year. Despite the unusual front office situation, they’ve continued to be quite active, re-signing reliever Rafael Montero and now adding Abreu, both on three-year deals.
Turning to the financials, the Astros currently have a 2023 payroll around $163MM and a competitive balance tax figure around $178MM, per Roster Resource. Their Opening Day payroll figure was $175MM last year and $188MM in 2021, per Cot’s Baseball Contracts. Assuming Abreu’s contract is in the predicted range of about $20MM per season, that would push their payroll up above $180MM and their CBT number close to $200MM. Though they’re getting close to their previous highs in spending, it stands to reason that they can push it a little bit this winter on the heels of a Championship run and all the extra revenues that go along with that. As for the CBT, the lowest threshold for 2023 will be $233MM, leaving them with plenty of remaining space even if they plan on avoiding going over.
For the White Sox, this marks the end of an era that lasted almost a decade. Vaughn is a natural first baseman whose attempts to move to the outfield went poorly. He produced -16 Outs Above Average on the grass in 2022, the lowest mark of any outfielder in the league this year. His -10.5 Ultimate Zone Rating was also the lowest for an MLB outfielder on the season while his -14 Defensive Runs Saved was among the bottom five. However, he hit .273/.323/.433, producing a wRC+ of 115 while just 24 years old. The Sox surely hope that he can produce even better results as he continues to acclimate to MLB pitching, especially without having to bother with worrying about his outfield defense in the future. Nonetheless, the club will be looking to improve on an 81-81 season while letting their best hitter depart, which won’t be an easy task.
For the Astros, their lineup was already extremely potent, featuring the likes of Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, Yordan Alvarez and Kyle Tucker. They’ve now added one of the best hitters in the league as they look to defend their World Series title in the year to come.
Bob Nightengale of USA Today first reported that Abreu and the Astros were finalizing a deal, as well as the three-year term (Twitter links). Jon Heyman of The New York Post first relayed that the salary would be around $20MM per season. Mark Berman of Fox 26 reported that it would actually be $19.5MM per year.

[jrgum3]

damnit, I was hoping the Padres would get him

The rich get richer but if I were a free agent I'd definitely listen if the Astros wanted me. Those guys know how to win and I'd love to play for Dusty Baker.

[JAKEPEAVY21]

The rich get richer but if I were a free agent I'd definitely listen if the Astros wanted me. Those guys know how to win and I'd love to play for Dusty Baker.

Sneaky good signing by Houston. Another very good hitter to lengthen the lineup.

Abreu not only is an RBI machine and hits for power but hits for a pretty high average as well.

[JMobile]

Miguel Cabrera to retire after next season. Hope he has a game in Florida to say farewell to the team that found him.

[cincinnatikid513]

reds just can't wait til they can buyout that terrible contract of mike moustakas

can't wait to see who the reds sign in free agency nobody good of course

[EmpireMaker]

The Rays are among the teams that have reached out to the representatives for Jacob deGrom, reports Andy Martino of SNY. They join the Rangers, Yankees and incumbent Mets as clubs known to have some amount of interest, although there are surely a number of other teams in the bidding.
Needless to say, Tampa Bay represents a long shot in the race for any top free agent. The Rays consistently run payrolls in the bottom five to ten, and it’s impossible to envision them winning any all-out bidding war against either New York franchise or a Texas club that has rapidly pushed its payroll upwards and seems determined to land impact pitching this winter. Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic unsurprisingly writes that Tampa Bay officials aren’t bullish on their chances of signing deGrom.
Still, there’s no harm for the Rays in touching base with the four-time All-Star’s camp. deGrom is a Florida native and a Stetson product, and there’s been some speculation he could welcome an opportunity to return to the Southeast. To be clear, the pitcher himself hasn’t publicly aired any geographic preferences. The Rays also offer a more clearly competitive roster than the Rangers, although it’s debatable whether they’re better positioned to contend for a World Series than the Yankees, Mets or other teams that could enter the bidding like the Dodgers and Giants.
The Rays opened the 2022 season with a payroll just south of $84MM, per Cot’s Baseball Contracts. Roster Resource estimates their 2023 commitments around $68MM at present, so there should be a bit of room for president of baseball operations Erik Neander and his staff to augment the roster. Adding a player like deGrom would require blowing this year’s franchise-record spending level out of the water, though, with MLBTR predicting the two-time Cy Young winner to land a record $45MM average annual value over a three-year term.
The projected $135MM guarantee would be the second-largest expenditure in franchise history, training only the $182MM extension signed by shortstop Wander Franco last offseason. That was spread over 11 years, while a deal for a 34-year-old ace would involve much higher salaries over a shorter term. Tampa Bay was reportedly willing to offer Freddie Freeman a deal in the $150MM range last winter, but even that would’ve been dispersed across six to seven seasons. Tyler Glasnow, who signed an extension in August, is slated for a $25MM guarantee in 2024 that’ll mark the largest single-season salary the team has paid.

[jrgum3]

Sneaky good signing by Houston. Another very good hitter to lengthen the lineup.

Abreu not only is an RBI machine and hits for power but hits for a pretty high average as well.

Yeah he can rake. That lineup is unfair but that's what good teams do they address pressing needs and the Astros had a need for a 1B with Gurriel hurt and Mancini not really producing what they thought he would when they got him from Baltimore.

[JAKEPEAVY21]

Padres honing in on Bogaerts and Trae Turner now supposedly