After an unsurprisingly quiet holiday weekend, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on as the hot stove turns back on around baseball today:
1. What will happen with the Correa-Mets deal followed renewed medical concerns?
News came out over the weekend revealing that the Mets had flagged a right ankle issue in their physical examination of Carlos Correa, which was the final step before the sides finalized a 12-year, $315MM pact. The issue is reportedly the same one that gave the Giants enough pause that their 13-year, $350MM agreement with Correa fell apart, which is what allowed the Mets to land Correa in the first place. Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports that a deal is still expected to get done, noting that other teams have checked in on Correa over the weekend, but the sides are still committed to working things out. Heyman suggests that language in the contract may be revised to accommodate New York’s concerns, as it was when the Red Sox had post-physical medical concerns while finalizing JD Martinez’s 5-year deal with the club before the 2018 season.
2. Are the last starters going to start coming off the board?
Reports about three of the top starting pitching targets left on the free agent market surfaced over the weekend, with Nathan Eovaldi being connected to the Padres, Angels, and an AL East mystery team, with the Angels also linked to Corey Kluber and the Padres also linked to Johnny Cueto. Both teams certainly make sense as landing spots for any of the aforementioned free agent starters; the Angels have solid options for five slots in their rotation, but have typically gone with a six-man rotation to accommodate their unicorn superstar Shohei Ohtani. The Padres, meanwhile, have a relatively thin rotation even after adding Seth Lugo, especially when compared to their incredibly deep lineup and strong bullpen. One factor that could mix up the starting pitching market, however, is the sudden willingness of the Red Sox to listen to offers on oft-injured ace Chris Sale. Sale was previously among the very best starters in the game, making trips to the All Star game and receiving Cy Young votes in seven straight seasons from 2012-2018. An array of injuries have largely kept Sale off the field from 2020-2022, however, with less than 50 innings pitched in that time. Sale surely offers more tantalizing upside than any other starter available, but if his injury woes continue, an acquiring club could be left on the hook for his hefty salary without much production to show for it.
3. Will the Rangers manage to add the bat they need?
The Rangers were reportedly a finalist for the services of Michael Conforto before he landed in San Francisco on a two-year deal. This leaves Texas in a place they’ve been all offseason: in desperate need of outfield help. Leody Taveras and Adolis Garcia look like they can handle the lion’s share of starts in center field and right field, respectively, headed into the 2023 season. That still leaves left field as largely vacant, however, with Josh Smith and Brad Miller among a list of internal options who do not inspire confidence. Outside of a long shot trade for a big bat like Bryan Reynolds, the club seems likely to add a bat from free agency. The pickings at the position are slim at this point, though, with Jurickson Profar and Trey Mancini looking to be the only clear everyday players left available. Failing the addition of one of those two players, the Rangers could add multiple players in order to mix and match between left and DH, where Mitch Garver primarily played in 2022. Options for such a venture include Rafael Ortega, David Peralta, AJ Pollock, and Andrew McCutchen.
Woah!
How about another Correa article, obviously the previous 5 weren’t enough
relax. it’s a daily update page. don’t read if you don’t want the news. it’s not like his name wasn’t in the title.
Ever hear of sarcasm Moneyball, or couldn’t the Athletics afford that either?
Dombrowski included it along with paying for soda in the Carlos Pena trade
How could anyone miss your sarcasm? Moneyball is replying directly to your sarcasm. Sarcasm isn’t a free pass out of a dumb comment
Mets are still suckers.
Hey it’s the Mets headache now. Expensive gamble either way and they will blow it guaranteed. It’s how they Roll.
How appropriate it is Boxing Day today LOL
Send in The Clown.
Don’t bother Stan, Rob’s here.
Cohen grew up a Mets’ and bought the team as a hobby. He obviously loves attention and since he’s the lone owner, he doesn’t have to answer to a board or others. Even George has to keep an eye on the financials.
The Wilpons still own 5% of the Team
5% means no power.
The Wilpons still control SNY which Broadcasts the Games
@Deweybelongsinthehall(and he does)
Sounds fun!! With almost 750 billionaires in the US, maybe there are 29 other Cohen’s, fans of each of the MLB teams out there that should take up the same hobby!!
Imagine 30 people
Spendin’ money for today!
You
You may say I’m a dreamer
But I’m not the only one
I hope someday they’ll all be owners
And MLB will be as one
Nicely done WW. You’re the John Lennon of the comment section.
I think Garver is a good catcher and is going to catch a good amount of games. I know it’s risky with his track record, but getting him and an actual DH into the lineup half the time would be big. And I don’t really buy the season Heim had though I’m a fan of him. Sooo I think the rangers need a LF and at least a part time DH. And ya pickings being slim… have a ton of good to very good prospects they haven’t touched to this point for some reason.
Bubba Thompson.
I’d rather see duran show he can’t play LF before we go to a corner OF that I’m pretty confident won’t hit or get on base enough. But it’s looking more apparent we’re going to just throw stuff at the wall and see what sticks
Ozuna from the Braves could easily be landed for left.
Long term, even short term, the Giants might actually be relieved that the Correa deal didn’t go through.
Might be? I’d say the Giants are coming out of this looking like geniuses. Could’ve maybe handled it better, but at least they avoided a long-term disaster – like another Barry Zito.
Don’t talk ill of the Zito, you’ll regret it.
More Boras propaganda from Heyman.
Heyman is trash.
As an A’s fan I’d love to see Raimel Tapia out in left field. No mention of him at all this off-season
No mention of him…..
Because he’s really not very good.
He’s “ok”, the kind of player the As would throw out there just to be able to feild a team
But if they wanted to win. He has to be your 5th OF
“If they wanted to win”
So a perfect fit for the A’s, eh?
So…. Is Sale a Hall of Famer because he had 5 really good years? He meets the Kent, Rolen, Helton, Wagner test.
@melchez17 no he isn’t. It’s not 5 good years but 5 years where you are the best in the world hands down.
Kent and Rolen are HOFs with Kent being borderline.
Like 7 years of being top 6 in CY voting? 6 seasons top 10 in era and whip. Meaning he was elite in his time for a 6-7 year period. He’s probably closer than you think.
close only counts in horse shoes and sex.
Rolen got MVP votes in 4 seasons. Highest was a 4th place finish. 14, 20 and 24 we’re the other seasons. A 7 time all star… Out of 17 years. There were better 3b’s than him playing during his career.
Kent won an MVP. Right in the middle of his time in Roid World.
So, one MVP season between the 2 of them and they were “best in the world hands down”?
LOL
Rolen first all star game was 2002, he started.
2003 started
2004 started
2005 bench
2006 bench
2010 bench
2011 start
The 2011 start he was voted by fans even though he was hitting .240 with no power.
Hall of Very Good.
You’re evaluating a players career based on All Star Game starts?
Minimal importance
In my mind Chris Sale already has a case for the HOF even if he never throws another pitch. A good comp might be another southpaw from a different era, Sandy Koufax.
Koufax actually made the HOF as a first time eligible based on the final 6 seasons of his 12-year MLB career. In that short span he accumulated 46.5 of his 53.1 career total bWAR. His final 4 seasons were even more astounding, arguably the most dominant stretch in MLB history with a 36.4 bWAR metric. What made his final run even more impressive was the fact that he pitched the last two seasons with chronic left elbow arthritis that ended his career at 30 following the 1966 World series.
Sale has thus far totaled 45.6 bWAR in his 12 seasons. That number has been accrued over much fewer appearances, games started and IP’s than what Koufax wound up with in his career. Part of that was Sale’s transition from a late inning reliever in his first two years to a full time starter in 2012. Unlike Koufax who had severe command issues during the first half of his career of his career, Sale was outstanding in the White Sox rotation from the get-go. In fact, Sale produced 39.0 of his current career WAR total during his first 7-years as an ace pitcher in Chicago and Boston. Sale didn’t quite have the dominant numbers in that 7-year stretch that Koufax had in his final 6 but it was still an extremely impressive run. What made Sale’s feat even more noteworthy was that it came in an era of juiced ball and hitters, to say nothing of how the game changed with the advent of advanced analytics and deeper bullpens.
I also happen to be one of the few posters here who has actually seen Koufax and Sale pitch in person. My baseball fandom began in the early 1960’s as a diehard Cubs and White Sox fan, just in time to witness the incredible final 4 seasons of Koufax historic career finish. I saw him pitch at Wrigley Field and on TV as much as possible, particularly when the spotlight was brightest with his World Series appearances in 1963, 1065 and 1966. I’ve seen Sale pitch much more frequently since he was a White Sox from 2010 through 2016.
What I can tell everyone is that each pitcher possessed elite arms and electric stuff. Koufax had a wipeout curve that he mixed with a solid fastball and improved command. Sale never had command issues which is why he currently holds the MLB career mark of 5.33 SO/W. Sale has one other career MLB record on his resume with his 11.1 SO/9. All that is the result of an elite fastball, wipeout slider and excellent change, to say nothing a two different curves he has used in his career. The fact that he has been able to command that entire repertoire is impressive indeed.
I strongly urge all posters to compare the Baseball Reference stat pages of both pitchers and then explain why Sale shouldn’t at least be in the HOF conversation like Koufax, especially in light of the different eras each pitched in.
One other note to consider. Chris Sale has pitched his entire career in two hitter friendly home ballparks, the ‘Cell’ in Chicago and Boston’s Fenway Park, the latter of which has often been a nightmare for southpaw pitchers with its famed ‘Green Monster’ LF wall. On the other hand, Sandy Koufax called pitcher friendly Dodger Stadium home for his final 5 illustrious seasons. Prior to that, Koufax pitched his 4 seasons out west in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum while Dodger Stadium was under construction. He first 3 home MLB seasons were spent at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn which had hitter friendly dimensions in its final incarnation.
Let’s see what his spin rates and velocity are when he gets back. DeGrom has had one of the most dominant stretches ever – and leading up to his second Cy Young was not even in a HOF conversation. I hear you in comparison, but if anything – their careers are flip flopped. Koufax won 3 Cy Young awards and one MVP in his final 5 years. On paper – sale’s numbers look amazing – but he has never been voted as the “best” pitcher in any year he pitched. He’s good – and at times elite, but has he really earned a HOF conversation as a pitcher?? Arguably – Sales’s best year was his first year with Boston – and that was really his only good year in the 5 years with Boston.
@Aaron
Solid reasoning,
Good reading…
what? His second year in Boston may have been even better than his first. 1.98 FIP, 0.86 whip, 13.5 k/9. I know he got hurt, but was still dominant.
Hey! Sale can get in line behind Johan Santana with some scissors and a closet full of uniforms. He’ll be waiting a long time.
“It’s not 5 good years but 5 years where you are the best in the world hands down”
That’s pretty extreme and if that were the criteria we would have a very small hall. If we go back in time (before the steroid era made it weird) and look at the trends, voting in 1-3 players per year is pretty standard.
Obviously it’s more complicated than this, but big picture, if you elect two players each year, it’s correlative to two “player units” several years hence. Kind of like how the best two “player units” in 2023 will be in the Hall when two “units” are elected in 2043 or whatever.
Being the best in baseball for a few years makes a strong case. It certainly gets weird for players who get injured or have a Christian Yelich-like nosedive, but that’s where cumulative stats and things like WAR come into play.
Chris Sale? If he retired today he would be borderline. Probably veterans committee.
Rolen is no more a HOFer than Brian Giles is
Yeah Scott had a good career but good isn’t enough
He never led the league in batting, homers or in any offensive category
Not sure why you would compare to every day players. A truer test is Koufax and he’s not even close. Kent’s AB numbers would look even stronger if PEDs never happened. Billy Wagner reminds me of Lee Smith who would have gotten more consideration earlier if he didn’t play when Fingers, Goose and Sutter were still in everyone’s head. For Wagner it of course was Mariano and Hoffman.
You’re selling Sale short (pun intended). For the 7 seasons from 2012-18, he’s 4th in ERA, 3rd in WHIP, 3rd in SIERA, 3rd in K/BB, 3rd in xFIP, 2nd in K. The clear top SP from that era are Kershaw, Sale, Scherzer, deGrom. If you want to say 7 dominant years aren’t enough, that’s one thing, but he’s right there.
Is Sale a Hall of Famer because he had 5 really good years? He meets the Kent, Rolen, Helton, Wagner test.
=================================
It’s 7 really good years, not 5. And some might call them great years.
On marginal players, missing the number by 40% is a huge error.
Sale had 7 very good years where he was top 5 on the Cy Young and one at number 6. Sale has a good case for the Hall especially when guys like Kent and Rolen have a chance.
OK then, I’ll rephrase my “nope” response because I first I should say I’m a small Hall guy. However, yes, if you’re considering borderline candidates like Rolen, for example, then sure there’s a case for Sale. Again, I dismissed his chances cuz I believe only the elite belong in that museum. But that’s just me.
Nope.
Kent is the second best offensive 2B in MLB history behind Rogers Hornsby and Rolen has all the defensive metrics to warrent being in the Hall. I like Sale but i think he comes up a little short
If anyone is going into the Hall primarily for their defense, it would be Keith Hernandez.
Rolen thrived defensively at an offensively minded position while still being a good offensive player. Hernandez did the same only was not a good offensive player for his position. Rolen’s WAR is almost 10 points higher than Hernandez and while the Batting Average and Hits are almost a wash, Rolen hit almost twice as many Home Runs and drove in a couple of hundred more runs
I’d be interested in Mancini as a Rangers fan. Texas doesn’t need to sign someone long-term as I’d expect we’d have to do with Profar. Evan Carter has a lot of hype around him right now and he’s expected to be ready by 2024. I think he’s a Top 25-50 prospect in baseball next year.
If you’re not using him to swing a deal for what feels like a sure thing in Reynolds, then let’s just transition the position with a guy like Mancini who can share some at-bats with Garver at DH and Bubba in left.
True, I haven’t checked Mancini’s fielding % at 1B but I’m pretty sure he’s better than Lowe.
Ideally if Garver could play 80-100 games at 1B with Mancini playing the 60-80.
Hiem can play 120 games at C.
Mancini 80 games at LF and 60 at 1B.
Lowe can be the main DH (around 140 maybe 10 at 1B)
I don’t know why the Rangers didn’t sign Gallo for $11M, I think he would’ve signed for $10M. He would make perfect sense because of his versatility and familiarity with the team.
Heyman is too tight with Boras to be considered a reliable source….except, if he’s floating a JD-Martinez-like structure, it tells you that’s the giveback Boras may be willing to make for the bigger dollars. But if this issue is an issue of serious concern, the total dollars and length , even if cut by 10-15% might still be too much of a risk. No front office wants to feel like they got taken, especially when it’s right before their eyes
For the Rangers, I wouldn’t mind Rangers signing Longoria to a 1 yr deal to play 1B so Lowe can DH.
Also, I’d like to see them sign Duvall to play LF with Bubba. Duvall when healthy has a big bat Rangers are missing. Mancini makes sense too to play OF/1B/DH.
Gallo and Bellinger made sense. But I like your idea of Longoria and Mancini.
Lowe needs to be the main DH. If Garver can play average defense at 1B would be perfect. Maybe 100 game there and 40 at C. With the other 60 comong from a combination of Duran, Jung, Foscue, Lowe (if no other additions are made)
The depth of the starting pitching makes me think they’ll trade for an above average outfielder and reliever.
Not sure why everyone is sleeping on Bubba Thompson in RF. Rookie first rounder came up and held his own for a good while. Dude is an immense talent all around. If they are smart, they give him the lion share of RF with a veteran like Miller to tandem with. Let’s see if he can lock it down. At minimum, you have Thompson, Taveras, and Garcia with probably the best defensive outfield in the league, even if Thompson doesn’t hit.
You mean LF. Garcia is the RF.
Garcia will be in RF. If Bubba plays OF he will be in LF.
I do agree though that Garcia, Taveras, and Thompson will be a very good defensive OF. They still need to sign someone like Duvall or Mancini to rotate out there and DH
I’m a Mets fan very happy with his team.
Love baseball due to the fact that’s what we breath in the Dominican Republic…definitely part of our culture.
Also, love reading the MLBTRADERUMORS comments all day long.
Credit to the Rangers fans for their knowledge and well analyzed inputs.
Aaronzapoznik you’re just awesome!!!
Merry Christmas to all… God bless and good luck to everyone next season.
Very wholesome post. Same to you 🙂
I’m a lifelong Orioles fan and am super pumped for the next few years as more of the prospects we suffered through a long, miserable rebuild to stockpile continue to arrive and thrive. The early results with Adley Rutschman, Gunnar Henderson, Kyle Stowers, etc. are pretty encouraging so far. Can’t wait for Spring Training!
You guys have a great foundation so far.
Hopefully in the coming years one or at least 2 superstar signed over there or are acquired via trade. Soto would be awesome along with an ace pitcher… that’s the strongest division in baseball tho… They should have gone after Rondon…affordable contract for the resources you have available.
Mancini is not really an OF and is an unexciting bat. If TX is only looking for a fill in until prospects are ready, at least consider someone that can actually cover the position better than a cinder block. Pham, Pollock or Grossman would all be better fillers.
If I were Texas, I would ask LA about Chris Taylor. He can play all outfield positions plus all 3 infield positions exceot 1b, He’s not a great hitter, but he can fill the void for a little while.
LA looking to reset payroll tax. Trevor Bauer reinstatement puts them on the cusp.
Maybe offer Bratt and a lower tier lottery ticket and see what they say?
There are still trade options left for Texas in left field outside of Reynolds: McCarthy, Alex Thomas, Stone Garrett, Mays, Santander, Mullins, maybe Luis Robert/Andrew Vaughn, Verdugo, Meadows, Tyrone Taylor, Yelich w/some salary and Devin Williams, Ramon Laureano, etc. The break glass in case of emergency option it to turn deGrom into Ohtani since his OPS in 2021 was higher than most Rangers’ left fielders. He pitches and then plays left field 4 days.
“Luis Robert/Andrew Vaughn”. It hurts to laugh this this soon after one too many Christmas eggnogs!
FYI: The Rangers wouldn’t want Vaughn anywhere near the grass if they did offer the White Sox a deal they couldn’t refuse for their talented young first baseman. Texas also has little need for Vaughn at 1B with Nathaniel Lowe already set there.
I said maybe for a reason. Defense is irrelevant to me.
Duran and Foscue for Vaughn? I don’t care too much about defense, but his value has to go down if he can really just play first and DH and emergency outfield. He has a great eye ar the plate, and Garcia/Thompson/Tavares could make up for his lack of range. These are long reaches, but so were Soto, Murphy, and Vashuro (I believe) before they got traded)
But who does Texas have to trade? I mean, fir a guy like Verdugo, for ex. He didn’t have a very good season in 22, but the Sox aren’t going to just give him away.
And especially when you consider that he’s the last of the return from the Betts trade…
Seriously, they have a top 6 farm with 5 guys in the top 100. They have guys to trade.
Mullins is probably not really available since the Orioles don’t really have another everyday option in CF right now but Austin Hays could probably be had without paying an arm and a leg and is quite solid.
Arozerena would fit in left Rays .might want to move (Boras is his agent)he hates them because they are one of the few teams to smart for him.not sure texas has enough of what they want though. Maybe their starting catcher and 2 of their top 10 prospects?
I don’t see the WhiteSox trading Vaughn especially since they let Abreu go.
I wish the Rangers would get an upgrade defensively at 1B. Lowe is so bad defensively.
I really wish they would trade for Sale to tandem with deGrom at the top. Rangers have a ton of middle infield prospects that are stuck under Semien and Seager that they could trade
I do agree about the middle infielders; however, they don’t need to spend additional money on starting pitching until they have a real left fielder. The point of making trades is to save money that would be spent on costly free agents. At this point, Wacha, Kluber, and Eovaldi are still out there. If they can get salary relief and an outfielder, it would make sense. They have Foscue and Duran (top 100 prospects at one point thiis season) and Acuna Jr., who is very close to top 100 status. Cole Winn was also a top 100 before, so they can trade him too,
Looking for a spot in a fantasy league.
Anyone help a brotha out?
Dude, the only place you saw Koufax pitch is on YouTube. I have friends and older people in my life and they never talk the language of Advanced Metrics. In fact they only talk in averages and in the last few years they’ve added in ratios. They tell me they use the eye test and still insist the value of RBIs and Wins. You can have an opinion on players, but next your going to tell me that DiMaggio should have a corrected WAR of 50.2 based on your scoring from the times you saw him play.
Are you the same guy who was at Woodstock and also the Newport Folk Festival when Bob Dylan went electric?
Rangers have the prospects it would take to make a Reynolds deal happen but it might bite into their plans for the near future. From the MLB Pipeline list..
Pitchers Leiter Or White. Ben asks for both but settles for one of the two. Both probable starters and if they are probably mid rotation (or top of for the pirates). If not they’ll be at least decent pen arms. Either way near guaranteed MLB players
OF/1b Dustin Harris. To me this is the only stead fast player. Pirates have a lot of outfield prospects but nothing that screams MLB. Harris seems like he could be that person as he is also a 1b option and the pirates need more there as well.
Pitchers Rocker or Winn. I lean to Winn mostly because of his time line. IMO Rocker has more potential but has some medical questions and is far out. This is a Ben asks for. Since the ‘headline’ is pretty decent, may not get.
Assuming Rocker/Winn doesn’t happen they have quite a few other prospect pitchers farther down the list.
Vanasco,Weems,Kent,Church,Stephan…
All likely pen pitchers if they see any real mlb time. a combination of some sort depending on the more headline.
Also depending on that, pirates sending a change of scenery guy Swaggerty is one i can think of off the top of my head, some cash to cover 2023 Contract for Bryan or maybe their 2nd round comp pick.
Of course Ben will ask for more but if he ended up with something like this I wouldn’t show up at his house with a pitch fork
Ideally Leiter, White and Harris along with Kent or Church. For Reynolds and Cash. If I was Ben I’d pull the trigger before the Rangers say ‘Final Offer’ as it would solidify a 2024 push if half of them do not bust.
Rangers aren’t trading Leiter AND White for Reynolds. Maybe for Alcantara or Acuña.
yeah, i wouldn’t think so. One of them would need to be in the package given what BC said he was looking for. one of them and Harris would be where i hold fast if I was BC but that may also bite into the Rangers plans for the future so…
They have the pieces though that would make it easy to pull off a trade from the pirates side.