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Tigers Interested In Paul Goldschmidt

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With their first prominent offseason move now in the books, the Tigers may be looking to follow up the Alex Cobb signing with some offensive help.  MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reports (via X) that Detroit has interest in seven-time All-Star first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, who is a free agent for the first time in his 14-year career.

Acquiring Goldschmidt isn’t the type of blockbuster move it would’ve been just a few years ago, as the veteran is coming off the first true middling season of his long career.  Goldschmidt had a perfectly average 100 wRC+ over 154 games and 654 plate appearances with the Cardinals in 2024, while batting .245/.302/.414 with 22 home runs.  All three points of that slash line were career lows for Goldschmidt, and his strikeout, walk and chase rates were all well below the league average.

Since Goldschmidt turned 37 in September, it could be that he is simply hitting a decline phase after holding off Father Time for so long.  That said, there is reason to believe the first baseman might still have something left in the tank for a 15th MLB season (or beyond).  Most of Goldschmidt’s struggles were contained to the first half of the season, as he hit a more respectable .271/.319/.480 in 250 PA after the All-Star break.  He has continued to blister the ball when he does make contact, as Goldschmidt had strong barrel rates and a hard-hit ball rate that ranked in the 92nd percentile of all batters.

Between the hard-contact numbers and Goldschmidt’s excellent track record, there is certainly reason for teams to think he might have a bounce-back season in a new environment.  His age means that a one-year contract is likely, which fits the Tigers’ preference for shorter-term contracts.  Recent reports have indicated that Detroit is known to be looking for one- or two-year deals for starting pitchers, and the team is also wary of making a play for any free agent attached to a qualifying offer.  This would seemingly hamper the Tigers’ chances of signing another target in Christian Walker, so Goldschmidt could be viewed as alternative.

Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris has been vocal about his desire to add some veteran leadership to a young and talented club that reached the playoffs this season.  Goldschmidt would certainly fill that role in the clubhouse, and his right-handed bat fits well in a very left-handed Detroit lineup.

The Tigers can use all the offense they can get considering the team’s lackluster hitting numbers in 2024, though installing Goldschmidt at first base begs the question of what will be done with Spencer Torkelson.  The DH spot would allow Torkelson or Goldschmidt some at-bats when Kerry Carpenter is used in right field, though naturally Torkelson would be something of an odd man out in this situation.

It doesn’t appear as though Detroit is giving up on Torkelson’s potential, even though he has yet to show much consistency over parts of three MLB seasons.  In an interview on MLB Network (hat tip to Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press), Harris described Torkelson as “immensely talented. Just like these young guys, we got to stick with him.  We got to keep finding ways to get a little bit more out of him.”

Merv Rettenmund Passes Away

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Former big leaguer and longtime batting coach Merv Rettenmund passed away on Saturday at age 81.  Rettenmund played 13 seasons with the Orioles, Reds, Padres, and Angels from 1968-1980, then was a hitting coach for five different teams over parts of 19 seasons from 1983 to 2007.

Rettenmund was a two-sport star in his college days at Ball State, and was even a 19th-round pick for the Dallas Cowboys in the 1965 NFL Draft.  Already signed to the Orioles, Rettenmund went on to make his big league debut in 1968 and soon established himself as a regular on an outstanding Baltimore team.  Rettenmund hit .284/.383/.436 in 2021 plate appearances during his six seasons with the O’s, bouncing between all three outfield positions.

This stretch of Rettenmund’s career was highlighted by a World Series title with the Orioles in 1970, and he moved on to win another ring with the 1975 Reds.  Though Rettenmund’s production dropped off during his two years in Cincinnati, a backup role on one of the greatest teams in baseball history was no small feat.  He served mostly as a platoon player and pinch-hitter for the remainder of his career, and finished with a .271/.381/.406 slash line and 66 home runs across 3074 PA and 1023 games in the majors.

After retirement, Rettenmund moved into a lengthy second chapter of his baseball life by becoming a well-respected hitting coach.  Rettenmund spent parts of 11 seasons as the Padres’ hitting coach over two different stints (1991-99, and 2006-07) in San Diego, and his coaching duties also included stops with the Rangers, Athletics, Braves, and Tigers.  Three of Rettenmund’s teams won pennants, including the 1989 A’s team that won the World Series.

We at MLB Trade Rumors send our condolences to Rettenmund’s family, friends, and peers.

Garrett Crochet Rumors: Cubs, Padres, Yankees, Red Sox, Reds

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7:28pm: MLBNetwork’s Jon Morosi reported this evening that a Crochet deal coming together during the Winter Meetings this week is “increasingly possible.” What’s more, Morosi suggests that the Red Sox are “more willing” to listen on top shortstop prospect Marcelo Mayer than previously believed and could become a more significant factor in Crochet’s trade market if they make him available in trade talks with the White Sox.

4:23pm: Garrett Crochet’s status as the offseason’s top trade candidate means that there is plenty of buzz surrounding the White Sox southpaw as the Winter Meetings get underway.  A crosstown trade could be a possibility, as Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times reports that the Cubs “have had at least preliminary talks” with the Sox about Crochet’s availability.

The Cubs’ list of top prospects is heavy on position players, which could fit with White Sox GM Chris Getz’s stated aim of obtaining premium position-player talent in exchange for Crochet’s services.  It is easy to imagine Getz asking for at least one of Matt Shaw or Owen Caissie as a headliner in a trade package, or perhaps even Pete Crow-Armstrong if the Sox wanted a player with some actual big league experience.  Given the Cubs’ depth at both the MLB and minor league levels, Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer might feel comfortable in parting with a younger blue-chipper in order to land a controllable pitcher.

Crochet is projected to earn only $2.9MM in arbitration this season, and he is under one further year of team control in 2026.  Even if Crochet’s production takes a dip from his 2024 numbers, he’d still be a bargain in comparison to the cost of the average starting pitcher.  This might be the type of special circumstance that would make the Cubs want to keep adding to their rotation, even though the Wrigleyville starting five already seems set with Justin Steele, Shota Imanaga, Jameson Taillon, Javier Assad, and new signing Matthew Boyd.

The White Sox are known to have a very high asking price on Crochet, and apparently had interest in at least one of Ethan Salas or Leodalis De Vries in trade talks with the Padres, as per USA Today’s Bob Nightengale.  San Diego has been linked to Crochet on the rumor mill since prior to the trade deadline, yet the Friars have seemingly drawn a line when it comes to moving either of the top two prospects in their farm system.

The Padres and Cubs are just two of the many clubs known to have had some level of interest in Crochet in the last six months, and given his low price, it’s probably safe to say just about every team in baseball has probably at least checked in with Getz about what it would take to land the left-hander.  The Yankees refused to deal Spencer Jones to the White Sox for Crochet prior to the deadline, but MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo (X link) writes that New York is still “believed to be in” on the Crochet sweepstakes.

Boston may be a different story, as Cotillo hears that the Red Sox are “just on the periphery of Garrett Crochet talks and are not aggressors at all.”  This tracks with reporting from Cotillo’s MassLive colleague Sean McAdam a couple of weeks ago, as McAdam wrote that negotiations between the two Sox teams had seemingly quieted.  On paper, the Red Sox would seemingly be an ideal fit for Crochet given Boston’s need for frontline pitching and their collection of elite position-player prospects (Roman Anthony, Kristian Campbell, Marcelo Mayer, Kyle Teel), but obviously a match depends on what exactly Chicago would want back in return.  For instance, there have been reports that Anthony and Campbell are the true untouchables within the “big four” Red Sox prospects, so talks might have cooled with the White Sox are insisting on one of those two.

There appear to be mixed signals on whether or not the Reds could be involved.  Cotillo writes that “Cincinnati [is] seen as a real threat to land Crochet,” but Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer throws cold water on the possibility, saying that “the talks went nowhere” between the Reds and White Sox, “and there’s no reason to think they’ll re-engage at this point.”  Wittenmyer notes that the two sides discussed Crochet before Cincinnati acquired Brady Singer from the Royals, so that deal could mark the end of any higher-level pitching moves the Reds could make.

Dick Allen, Dave Parker Elected To Baseball Hall Of Fame

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Dick Allen and Dave Parker were elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, as revealed by the Classic Baseball Era committee tonight.  Parker (14 votes) and Allen (13) each received more than the minimum 12 of 16 votes necessary for induction.  Tommy John was the next-closest candidate with seven votes, and Ken Boyer, John Donaldson, Steve Garvey, Vic Harris and Luis Tiant each received fewer than five votes.

Allen and Parker will be officially inducted to Cooperstown on July 27, along with any players inducted by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.  The results of the writers’ ballot will be announced on January 21.

Known in the past as the “veterans committee,” the Era Committee is a rotating panel of former players, managers, executives, team owners, media members, and historians who meet annually to determine which (if any) candidates from the past deserve election to Cooperstown.  Candidates include former players who weren’t elected or considered on the normal BBWAA ballot, or non-playing personnel that aren’t part of the writers’ ballot.  This year’s ballot looked at candidates whose biggest contributions to the game came in the pre-1980 “Classic Baseball Era,” though obviously a few of the candidates also had significant moments in their careers after the 1980 season.

Today’s news is undoubtedly bittersweet for Allen’s family and supporters, as Allen passed away in 2020.  He twice fell just a single vote shy of induction in past appearances on Era Committee/Veterans Committee ballots, and Allen didn’t receive much attention on the writers’ ballots when he was eligible.  At long last, the slugger has now finally been recognized by Cooperstown for an outstanding 15-year career highlighted by the 1972 AL MVP Award.

Allen hit .292/.378/.534 with 351 homers and 1119 RBI over 7315 career plate appearances with the Phillies, Cardinals, Dodgers, White Sox, and Athletics from 1963-77.  He kicked his career off with a bang by winning NL Rookie of the Year honors in 1964, while also finishing seventh in MVP voting that same year.  Allen was a seven-time All-Star who twice led the American League in home runs, and had an outstanding 155 wRC+ for his career.

No discussion of Allen is complete without mention of his outspoken personality.  To his detractors, Allen was viewed as a disruptive malcontent who clashed with some fans, sportswriters, teammates, managers, and front offices, which was part of the reason Allen frequently changed teams despite his success on the field.  To his supporters, however, Allen was a no-nonsense figure who was more than willing to fight back against perceived injustice, especially when faced with racism as a black player in the 1960s and ’70s.  While Allen was often perceived as a bad influence during his career, many of Allen’s past teammates and managers have spoken out to counter that reputation, describing Allen in glowing terms as a clubhouse leader.

Parker also dealt with controversy during his career, as he battled a cocaine addiction in the 1980s.  This well-publicized issue may have been the reason Parker also garnered relatively little support on the BBWAA ballot, and knee problems also cut short his prime years.  Still, “the Cobra” at his peak was one of the best all-around players in baseball, with a resume that includes seven All-Star nods, two NL batting titles, three Gold Gloves, the 1978 NL MVP Award, and two World Series rings during his 19 Major League seasons.

Parker played his first 11 of those seasons in Pittsburgh, joining Willie Stargell as the heroes of that era of Pirates baseball, including a starring role on the 1979 “We Are Family” championship team.  Injuries and drug problems hampered the tail end of Parker’s time in Pittsburgh, but he rebounded with a four-year run with the Reds that saw him bank top-five finishes in MVP balloting in 1985 and 1986.  The Cobra then earned a bit more postseason glory on the Athletics’ pennant-winning teams in 1988 and 1989, capturing another ring with the latter A’s club.  Over 2466 games and 10184 PA, Parker hit .290/339/.471 with 339 home runs, 1493 RBI, and had a 120 wRC+ for his career.

This year’s 16-person Classic Baseball Era committee was comprised of HOF members Paul Molitor, Eddie Murray, Tony Perez, Lee Smith, Ozzie Smith, and Joe Torre; MLB owners and executives Sandy Alderson, Terry McGuirk, Dayton Moore, Arte Moreno and Brian Sabean; media members/historians Bob Elliott, Leslie Heaphy, Steve Hirdt, Dick Kaegel and Larry Lester.

Athletics Interested In Contract Extension With Brent Rooker

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The A’s shocked by the baseball world by signing Luis Severino to a three-year, $67MM contract, as few expected the team to make a franchise-record signing in advance of their planned three-year stop in West Sacramento before moving into their new ballpark in Las Vegas.  The next step could be locking up a star player on an extension, as manager Mark Kotsay told reporters (including MLB.com’s Martin Gallegos) that the team was “hopeful to get something done with” Brent Rooker.  Such a move would “continue showing a different direction for this organization in terms of making commitments to players,” Kotsay said.

While signing younger or less-established players to extensions is common practice for all teams no matter their payroll size, the tactic naturally has greater import for lower-spending teams.  Gaining cost certainty on a player through their arbitration years or gaining control over a free-agent year or two can prove to be a huge bargain for clubs that aren’t comfortable in spending big to retain those players in free agency, or to bring new high-priced talent in as replacements.

Even with this in mind, the Athletics have rarely looked to extend players, as Khris Davis’ two-year, $33.5MM deal from April 2019 is (remarkably) the only extension signed by an A’s player within the last decade.  Using MLBTR’s Contract Tracker to go back even further, the A’s have signed only nine extensions since October 2007.  Of those nine players, Sean Doolittle, Trevor Cahill, Brett Anderson, and Kurt Suzuki the only players to sign deals longer than two years.

Rooker is already under team control through the 2027 season, and is projected to earn $5.1MM in his first trip through the arbitration process.  The 30-year-old has more than earned that healthy salary, as Rooker has been nothing short of outstanding since coming to the then-Oakland A’s on a waiver claim from the Royals in November 2022.  While Rooker’s potential was hinted by his status as the 35th overall pick of the 2017 draft, he’d hit only .200/.289/.379 over 270 plate appearances with the Twins, Padres, and Royals over the 2020-22 seasons.

The breakout started in 2023 when Rooker hit .246/.329/.488 with 30 homers in 526 PA, and he kept on climbing with 39 home runs and a .293/.365/.562 slash line over 614 PA this past season.  Only six players in baseball had a higher wRC+ than Rooker’s 164 total, as the ex-waiver pickup unexpectedly blossomed into one of the best hitters in the game.

Since the Athletics were thought to be rebuilding, there have been plenty of trade rumors swirling around Rooker, with the logic being that the A’s would look to capitalize on this found-money acquisition by selling high.  However, GM David Forst firmly stated last month that the A’s were “going to keep” the slugger, and an extension would further cement Rooker’s place as a building block for the organization.

Though the Athletics lost 93 games in 2024, they seem emboldened by their 33-32 record over their final 65 games, and might be looking to take a step forward towards contention as soon as next year.  Even if Severino’s contract was partially inspired by the Athletics’ desire to retain their revenue-sharing status, the uncharacteristically big splash indicates that the A’s are getting more serious in their plans to play competitive baseball.

It isn’t necessarily a given that the A’s are looking for a very long commitment to Rooker, as an extension could potentially just cover his arb years.  Locking in three years of salary now might help the Athletics save a bit of money in the future if Rooker keeps upping his price tag with his elite numbers.  From Rooker’s perspective, he might prefer to keep betting on himself, or he might welcome the chance to cash in on his breakout with some life-changing financial security.

Rockies Sign Austin Nola To Minors Deal

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The Rockies have signed catcher Austin Nola to a minor league deal, according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (X link).  Nola will receive an invitation to the Rockies’ big league spring camp.

After signing a split contract with the Royals last winter, Nola didn’t appear in a single game in the Show, though he was briefly called up to Kansas City’s roster for a few days in June.  Salvador Perez and Freddy Fermin were both so durable that the Royals never had a real need for another catcher on the roster, and Nola also didn’t do much to force the issue by hitting only .174/.260/.298 over 191 plate appearances with Triple-A Omaha.  The Royals outrighted Nola off their 40-man roster in September, and he became a free agent after the season.

Entering his age-35 season, the veteran backstop will look for a path back to the majors in Colorado, though a depth role at Triple-A is also a possibility given the number of catchers already on hand.  Jacob Stallings was re-signed to a new contract a few weeks ago, Hunter Goodman is a multi-position utility player who can catch, and top prospect Drew Romo made his MLB debut in 2024 and could be in line for more playing time on the active roster.

There is a bit of a full-circle element to Nola’s signing, as the Rockies picked him in the 48th round of the 2008 draft when Nola was still a high schooler, but he instead opted for college ball at LSU.  Nola made his MLB debut with the Mariners in 2019 and looked like a budding star, but his production gradually declined after a trade to the Padres in 2020.  He was still getting regular at-bats behind the plate in San Diego as recently as 2022, yet a sharp decline in 2023 resulted in the Padres non-tendering him a little over a year ago.

Reds Showing Interest In Josh Naylor, Lane Thomas

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“The Reds have kicked the tires on” Josh Naylor and Lane Thomas in trade talks with the Guardians, according to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer.  The Guards are known to be open to offers for either player, though there isn’t any indication that a deal with the Reds or anyone is particularly close.  Wittenmyer’s use of the “kicked the tires” phrasing might hint that this was more of an exploratory check-in for the Reds than a serious push for either Cleveland player.

Cincinnati is known to be looking at outfield additions in particular, as president of baseball operations Nick Krall recently said that any new bat brought into the Reds’ fold would “most likely” be an outfielder.  Thomas’ right-handed bat could be a complement for Jake Fraley or TJ Friedl (both left-handed hitters) in right or center field, though since the Reds’ budget may be pretty limited, Thomas’ $8.3MM projected arbitration salary is a little steep for what might ideally be a part-time role.

Thomas hit better with the Nationals (.253/.331/.407 in 341 plate appearances) than he did with the Guardians (.209/.267/.390 in 187 PA) last season, and the combined totals work out to a slightly subpar 99 wRC+.  Thomas was worth 1.3 fWAR overall in his 130 total games, as public defensive metrics strongly disliked his right field glovework, and he was middling at best as a center field.

The Reds’ infield situation is both crowded and unsettled at the same time.  On paper, Jeimer Candelario, Christian Encarnacion-Strand and Noelvi Marte are lined up at the top choices to see time at the corner infield slots and (probably moreso in Encarnacion-Strand’s case) at designated hitter.  However, none of this trio hit well in 2024, plus CES missed most of the season due to wrist surgery, and Marte missed the first half of the season due to a PED suspension.

Adding Naylor’s big bat at first base would add a lot more certainty to this mix, and since Naylor is only under team control through the 2025 season, there would be plenty of time down the road for Encarnacion-Strand and Marte to develop into regulars in Cincinnati’s lineup.  Naylor is coming off another quality season with the Guardians, hitting .243/.320/.456 with a career-high 31 homers over 633 PA.

Given the profiles of the two players, it is fair to speculate that the Guardians might be more willing to trade Thomas in a pure salary-dump type of move, whereas Cleveland would want a more prominent return in exchange for Naylor.  As noted earlier, the Reds’ apparent lack of financial flexibility will make things tricky for Krall’s front office, so fitting Naylor’s projected $12MM salary might be an even greater challenge, even if Naylor offers more upside.

Latest On Teoscar Hernandez’s Market

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2:17PM: The Blue Jays also have interest in Hernandez but Anthony Santander appears to be Toronto’s chief backup target if Soto isn’t signed, according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (X link).

1:44PM: The Dodgers and Red Sox were previously linked to Teoscar Hernandez’s market earlier this offseason, and MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo reports that the Yankees are also looking at the free agent slugger.  The three suitors all have “serious interest” in Hernandez’s services, with one noteworthy caveat — all three clubs are in the running to land Juan Soto, so Hernandez is viewed as the natural backup plan for all parties if Soto can’t be signed.

The Mets and Blue Jays are the two other teams known to still be pursuing Soto.  At the moment, all five teams seem to be still be under consideration even if the Mets and Yankees have reportedly pushed the bidding up into the range of $710-$730MM.  Los Angeles is thought to be the least aggressive of Soto’s five suitors and perhaps seems more likely to break away from the pack to pivot towards Hernandez or another option, but Cotillo figures Hernandez won’t make his own decision until after Soto signs.

Hernandez has openly said that returning to the Dodgers is “the priority” of his offseason, and “I’m going to do everything in my power to come back….It feels great to be part of this.”  After a down year with the Mariners in 2023, Hernandez rebounded in the best possible way by winning a World Series and hitting .272/.339/.501 with 33 home runs over 652 plate appearances with L.A. last season.  Hernandez inked a one-year, $23.5MM contract last winter and now looks poised to land a much heftier multi-year deal this time around.

As sources tell Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe (X link), Hernandez’s preference is still to remain with Los Angeles, though the Red Sox have a solid case in their own right for the slugger’s services.  The Sox made a push for Hernandez last year in offering him a two-year, $28MM deal that Hernandez turned down in order to take the greater flexibility of the Dodgers’ one-year offer, plus L.A. was the more clear-cut contender heading into 2024.  Hernandez “has long been intrigued by the idea of playing at Fenway Park and he’s a fan of Alex Cora,” Abraham writes, so with a World Series ring now in tow, Hernandez could now explore a move to Boston and perhaps a big role in a future Red Sox championship team.

The Yankees shouldn’t be overlooked as contenders, as Hernandez has also enjoyed a lot of success at Yankee Stadium over the years.  New York might have the most incentive of all these teams to bolster the lineup if Soto departs, even if adding a big bat in the infield is also a priority since Gleyber Torres and Anthony Rizzo are free agents and unlikely to return.

Rejecting the Dodgers’ qualifying offer probably won’t have much impact on Hernandez’s market, though the Yankees and Red Sox would face a differing penalty level for signing the outfielder (or any player who rejected a QO).  Because New York was a luxury tax payor in 2024, signing Hernandez would cost the Yankees $1MM in international bonus pool money and their second- and fifth-highest picks in the 2025 draft.  Boston would have to give up $500K of int’l pool funds and their second-highest 2025 draft pick.  Los Angeles, of course, wouldn’t have to give up anything to sign Hernandez, as he is one of the Dodgers’ own free agents.

Mets Sign Oliver Ortega To Minors Contract

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The Mets have signed right-hander Oliver Ortega to a minor league deal that includes an invitation to New York’s big league spring camp, MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reports (X link).  Ortega was outrighted off the Astros’ 40-man roster in November, and since it wasn’t his first career outright, he chose to enter free agency.

The 28-year-old Ortega made his Major League debut in 2021, and he has a 4.03 ERA, 20.4% strikeout rate, and 10.8% walk rate over 58 career relief innings with the Angels and Twins.  After Houston claimed him off waivers from the Twins in October 2023, Ortega’s tenure as an Astro came and went without a single game played in either the majors or minors.  A pair of surgeries cost Ortega the entire 2024 season, as an initial procedure in Spring Training to remove loose bodies from his throwing elbow didn’t take, and he needed another surgery in late June to remove a bone spur from that same right elbow.

While a minor league deal doesn’t represent a huge commitment, the Mets seem satisfied enough with Ortega’s health situation to at least give him a look during Spring Training.  Ortega’s career Triple-A numbers include a 3.61 ERA, 27.7% strikeout rate and 7.42% walk rate over 72 1/3 innings, so he might be able to tap into that potential if he can improve his control against big league hitters.

Report: Diamondbacks Explored Montgomery/Bellinger Trade With Cubs

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There has been plenty of trade speculation surrounding the Diamondbacks’ Jordan Montgomery and the Cubs’ Cody Bellinger this offseason, as both players have outsized salaries and are somewhat imperfect roster fits on their respective clubs.  These same issues have seemingly led to a rather quiet trade market for either player to date, though USA Today’s Bob Nightengale writes that Arizona “tried to get the Cubs interested in a swap” involving the two players.  It isn’t known if the proposed deal was a straight one-for-one trade or if other players were involved, though it could be a moot point since the Cubs apparently didn’t have much interest.

Bellinger chose to pass on his opt-out clause in the wake of only an okay 2024 season, leaving him on Chicago’s roster through the 2026 season for $52.5MM in remaining salary.  This breaks down as $27.5MM in 2025, and then Bellinger can either opt out of the final year of the deal and pocket a $5MM buyout on his way back to free agency, or he can again forego the opt-out clause and earn $25MM in 2026.

Montgomery also decided against opting out of the final year of his two-year deal Arizona, and will receive $22.5MM for the 2025 season.  Whereas a case could’ve been made for Bellinger to test the market again this winter, there was no doubt Montgomery would be staying in his contract in the wake of a disastrous first season with the D’Backs.  Montgomery signed with Arizona just before Opening Day and then struggled to a 6.23 ERA over 117 innings, seemingly a by-product of missing Spring Training and not having a proper ramp-up due to his extended stint in free agency.

D’Backs owner Ken Kendrick was publicly critical of the Montgomery signing during a radio interview back in October, which was viewed as either some surprisingly harsh honesty from an executive about a player, or as Kendrick’s attempt to try and get Montgomery to opt out of his contract just to pursue a fresh start elsewhere.  If the latter, the tactic obviously didn’t work, and Nightengale writes that “the Diamondbacks are shopping [Montgomery] everywhere” to try and move that salary off the books.

A Montgomery-for-Bellinger trade is fascinating for several reasons, beginning with the simple fact that they were both members of the so-called “Boras Four.”  Along with Blake Snell and Matt Chapman, Montgomery and Bellinger were both represented by agent Scott Boras last offseason, and all four players ended up settling for shorter-term contracts with opt-out after lengthy stints in free agency didn’t result in the lucrative longer-term pacts each player was looking to score.  It should be noted that Chapman and Snell have now found such contracts in the last few months — Chapman via his extension with the Giants and Snell’s new five-year deal with the Dodgers.

From a pure baseball perspective, swapping Montgomery for Bellinger helps the D’Backs and Cubs each address some needs.  Bellinger would bring offense to an Arizona team that might be losing Christian Walker, Joc Pederson, and Randal Grichuk in free agency, and Bellinger could slot right in as a replacement for Walker at first base.  While Bellinger’s left-handed bat would further imbalance a Diamondbacks lineup that is already heavy with lefty swingers, Bellinger’s ability to play the outfield could make the D’Backs more comfortable in trading one of their in-house left-handed hitting outfielders.  Jake McCarthy or Alek Thomas are the likeliest trade candidates, since obviously Corbin Carroll isn’t going anywhere.

The Diamondbacks have a rotation surplus that is also drawing trade interest, and moving Montgomery to the Cubs would help Chicago bolster the back of its rotation.  Matthew Boyd was recently signed to join Shota Imanaga, Justin Steele, and Jameson Taillon in the Cubs’ starting five, and though Javier Assad is lined up for that fifth starter’s job, the Cubs are reportedly open to more additions in the starting pitching department.  Trading for Montgomery would give Chicago its own semi-surplus of rotation options that could be turned into trade chips, and also move Bellinger out of the Cub’ crowded outfield and first base situation.

Despite his rough 2024 numbers, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Montgomery rebound to his old self now that he’ll have the benefit of a normal offseason.  It’s probably safe to assume that he’d be a popular bounce-back candidate in trade talks if it wasn’t for the $22.5MM price tag, as rival teams might not want to make quite that big of a bet that Montgomery can regain his old form.

The Astros, Mariners, and Yankees have all shown some degree of interest in Bellinger, and New York in particular could emerge as a stronger suitor if the team doesn’t re-sign Juan Soto.  Even if the numbers haven’t matched up to date for the Cubs in finding a trade partner for Bellinger, this active market could be a reason why the Cubs are aiming a bit higher in their pursuits than perhaps settling for Montgomery in a swap of unfavorable contracts.

While Bellinger might yet opt out after 2025, the Diamondbacks would be facing the bigger financial burden in taking on two years of salary in exchange for Montgomery’s final remaining year.  After the 2025 season, however, a good deal of money is coming off Arizona’s books, as Zac Gallen, Eugenio Suarez, and Merrill Kelly are all free agents next winter.  That could make fitting Bellinger into the 2026 payroll a bit more palatable for the Snakes.

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