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Mariners, Giants, Padres, Rangers, Cubs, Angels Among Teams To Meet With Shohei Ohtani

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11:40pm: The Angels are indeed one of the finalists, as per The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (via Twitter).

10:39pm: The Angels are thought by “multiple sources” to be one of the finalists, Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan tweets.  The Tigers are out of the running, according to Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press.

8:59pm: The Rangers and Cubs will both meet with Ohtani, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports (Twitter link), and they’re also the only two non-West Coast teams who appear to still be alive in the candidate process.  The Rangers, Grant notes, have yet to comment on their status one way or the other.

7:22pm: The Nationals won’t be receiving a meeting, the Washington Post’s Chelsea Janes reports (Twitter link).

6:58pm: The Braves are out, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick reports (via Twitter).

6:50pm: The Padres will receive a meeting with Ohtani, FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman reports (Twitter links).  The Dodgers are also thought to still be active in the Ohtani sweepstakes though Heyman doesn’t have confirmation; regardless, the Dodgers aren’t thought to be favorites to land Ohtani.

6:38pm: The Rays, Cardinals and White Sox are out, according to the Tampa Bay Times’ Marc Topkin, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and USA Today’s Bob Nightengale (all Twitter links).

6:15pm: The Diamondbacks won’t receive a meeting, Ken Rosenthal tweets.

6:12pm: The Blue Jays, Pirates, and Brewers are all out, as respectively reported by Sportsnet.ca’s Shi Davidi, MLB.com’s Adam Berry, and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Tom Haudricourt (all Twitter links).

5:48pm: The Mets are also out, as per Joel Sherman of the New York Post (Twitter link).

5:38pm: Ohtani’s list is “heavy” on West Coast teams, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports, though the Cubs may still be involved.  Not every west-based team is included, however, as The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal tweets that the A’s aren’t involved.

5:28pm: The Red Sox are also out of the running, president of baseball ops Dave Dombrowski told Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe.  The Twins also won’t be getting a meeting with Ohtani, Heyman tweets.

5:16pm: The Giants and Mariners are among the teams that will receive meetings with Shohei Ohtani and his representatives next week, Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan reports (Twitter link).  It isn’t known who the other finalists are in the Ohtani sweepstakes, though the Yankees are one of the teams that didn’t make the cut, as Yankees GM Brian Cashman told reporters (including NJ.com’s Brendan Kuty and MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch).

According to Cashman, Ohtani seems to be leaning towards West Coast teams in smaller markets.  This ties to a report from FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman saying that Ohtani’s reps are informing teams that the two-way star would prefer to play in a smaller market.

The news adds another fascinating layer to the Ohtani sweepstakes, which was already one of the more intriguing free agent pursuits in recent memory.  Given the seeming lack of immediate financial motive that inspired Ohtani’s move to Major League Baseball, it opened the door for every team in baseball (regardless of market or payroll size) to make a push for the 23-year-old.  There had been speculation that Ohtani might look to avoid playing in a larger market, so this apparent confirmation creates a realistic possibility that he will land with a team that wouldn’t normally be considered a favorite to land such a coveted free agent.

Of course, San Francisco isn’t exactly a small market, though Ohtani wouldn’t necessarily be the center of attention on a club with such established stars as Buster Posey and Madison Bumgarner (and maybe even Giancarlo Stanton in the near future).  Playing for an NL team, however, would force Ohtani into a pinch-hitting or even a part-time outfield role for the at-bats he seeks in his attempt to be a two-way player in the big leagues.  The Mariners do have such a DH spot available (in a timeshare with Nelson Cruz), and were considered to be a contender for Ohtani given their long history of Japanese players.

The Yankees also have had several significant Japanese players on their past and current rosters, and were widely seen as one of the major favorites for Ohtani’s services from a financial (in terms of available international bonus money) and positional (openings at DH and in the rotation) standpoint, not to mention their international fame and their young core of talent ready to make a World Series push.  With Ohtani now out of the picture, the Yankees could move to signing more pitching depth — a reunion with C.C. Sabathia has been widely speculated as a possibility — or a veteran bat to serve as designated hitter, if the club doesn’t just rotate its DH days to find plate appearances for everyone on the current roster.

Marlins Agree To Framework Of Giancarlo Stanton Deals With Cards, Giants

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10:14pm: The 2-3 day timeline is “quite a hopeful estimate,” sources tell Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports.

5:47pm: The Stanton deal is expected to be wrapped up within the next 2-3 days, Craig Mish tweets.

4:41pm: The Cardinals are offering to take on more of Stanton’s money than the Giants, according to Craig Mish of MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (Twitter link).

3:17pm: Neither the Cardinals nor Giants have set timetables for Stanton to make a decision, Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets.

1:58pm: The Marlins have agreed to the “general framework” of Giancarlo Stanton trades with both the Cardinals and the Giants, Jon Morosi of MLB.com reports (Twitter links). Buster Olney of ESPN suggested earlier this week that was the case when the Stanton camp (him and agent Joel Wolfe) met with those clubs.

Whether a deal ultimately occurs with the Cardinals or Giants will depend on Stanton’s willingness to waive his no-trade clause to join either club, which looks far from certain. In fact, Jim Bowden of SiriusXM tweets that the Dodgers are the only team he’d agree to waive his no-trade rights for as of now. Bowden adds that the Giants would have a better chance than the “long shot” Cardinals of landing the right fielder if the Dodgers were to pass on acquiring him. A Stanton trade is not expected to come together Sunday, per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com (Twitter link).

The 27-year-old Stanton is a Los Angeles native who grew up rooting for the Dodgers, so his desire to join them more than anyone else isn’t surprising, especially when you consider their on-field success. Having never even played for a .500 team, let alone gone to the playoffs, since making his major league debut in 2010, Stanton made it clear during this past season that he’s tired of losing and wants to compete for championships. Stanton would likely get his wish to play meaningful baseball into the fall with the Dodgers, who are fresh off a National League-winning campaign, but Morosi reported earlier Sunday that the big-spending club is wary of the luxury-tax implications that would come with reeling in the NL MVP.

Stanton is due $295MM over the next decade, and while the Marlins could eat a large portion of that in order to maximize their return for the 59-home run man, Olney reported Saturday that Miami’s primary goal is to get Stanton’s money off the books. That would seemingly be a problem for the Dodgers, who will incur significant penalties if they run a mammoth payroll again in 2018. The Dodgers spent $237MM-plus in each of the past several seasons, and if it happens again next year, they’ll have to pay an extra 45 percent surcharge tax. Additionally, their top draft pick for 2018 (No. 30 overall) will drop 10 spots. Jason Martinez of MLBTR and Roster Resource currently estimates LA’s payroll for next season to open at $208MM-plus, but that’s obviously without factoring in Stanton or any other potential additions.

Meanwhile, although the Giants are already near the $197MM luxury tax for 2018 (they have upward of $190MM in payroll commitments), they’re reportedly willing to take on the majority of Stanton’s money if he’d waive his NTC to go to San Francisco. The Cardinals have far less money on the books for next year ($127MM-plus), but it’s unclear how much of Stanton’s money they’d add in a trade. Of course, along with the cash left on his deal, Stanton’s ability to opt out of the pact after the 2020 season has added another complication to trade talks between the Marlins and other teams. Despite the roadblocks, though,  the cost-cutting Marlins are seemingly in position to ship out Stanton if he green lights a move to St. Louis or San Francisco.

Giancarlo Stanton Rumors: Sunday

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In case you were unaware, Giancarlo Stanton is still on the Marlins. We’ll keep track of today’s rumblings on the National League MVP and trade candidate here…

  • The Red Sox are no longer involved in the Stanton race, per Craig Mish of MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (Twitter link). A report on Wednesday indicated that Boston and Miami hadn’t discussed Stanton since the general managers meetings in mid-November, so the Red Sox’s apparent exit from the sweepstakes doesn’t come as a surprise.
  • While Stanton has personally met with the GMs for the Giants and Cardinals, the Los Angeles-born slugger is still waiting to see how serious the Dodgers’ interest is before he’s willing to completely embrace going to another team, according to Jon Morosi of MLB.com (Twitter links). However, the Dodgers and Marlins haven’t made any “substantial progress” in talks, Morosi adds, as LA is wary of the luxury-tax implications that would come with acquiring him. Meanwhile, both the Giants and Cardinals are still “in the dark” about whether Stanton would waive his no-trade clause to join them, Mish relays on Twitter.
  • San Francisco and Miami have reportedly discussed Giants outfield prospect Heliot Ramos; however, there’s “no indication” the Giants have actually offered Ramos to the Marlins, Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets.

Giancarlo Stanton Rumors: Saturday

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Both the Cardinals and the Giants have recently been given permission to speak with NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton’s representatives. As we get deeper and deeper into the Stanton Saga, we’ll keep track of today’s rumors in this post.

  • Stanton was actually present with his lead representative, Joel Wolfe of Wasserman, at meetings with the Cardinals and Giants last week, according to Jon Heyman of FanRag. Both teams’ GMs attended those summits, adds Heyman, who suggests that Stanton’s presence shows he’s serious about joining either club. Indeed, neither the Cardinals nor Giants have been eliminated from the Stanton derby, Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets.

Earlier…

  • In a detailed piece, Heyman references a number of different anonymous sources in expressing skepticism that Stanton would approve a trade to St. Louis. Five different people close to Stanton apparently told Heyman that they believe he’d choose the Giants over the Cardinals if given a choice, and with a full no-trade clause on his side, Stanton has a big say in the matter. One of Heyman’s sources states that the West Coast would be the outfielder’s first choice, the East Coast would be his second choice, and the Midwest would be his last choice. Of course, as Heyman also notes, it’s worth mentioning that talks with St. Louis have progressed to a point at which their front office reps were invited to meet with Stanton’s camp; it seems unlikely that would happen if a trade to the Cardinals was a firm “no” from the reigning home run champ. According to another one of Heyman’s sources, the Marlins believe a trade agreement can be reached with the Giants. However, the Dodgers (who are reportedly Stanton’s first choice) are “not disinterested”. If that’s indeed the case, he could simply choose to wait out the trade process and hope L.A. and Miami can work out an agreement.
  • Buster Olney of ESPN reports via Twitter that the Marlins are more focused on moving as much of Stanton’s salary as possible than they are on maximizing their prospect return. As Derrick Gould of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Tim Healey of the Sun Sentinel both point out in their own tweets, this news is considerably in the Giants’ favor. The Cardinals have far more to offer in terms of prospects, but they don’t have a history of doling out enormous contracts to free agents. The Giants, on the other hand, are payroll juggernauts, and although they have nearly $190MM in payroll guarantees for 2018 already, that number could drop considerably next year with the potential departures of Hunter Pence and Denard Span. This doesn’t mean a deal with the Giants is imminent, but it does seem to make them a better trade partner for the Marlins.
  • Giants manager Bruce Bochy was apparently not present at the meeting between the San Francisco brass and Stanton’s representatives on Thursday, according to a tweet from Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle. It’s a fairly minor detail, but it does seem to decrease the likelihood that a trade is truly on the brink of taking place.

2017 Non-Tenders

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The deadline to tender 2018 contracts to players is tonight at 8pm EST. We’ll keep track of the day’s non-tenders in this post (all referenced arbitration projections courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz) …

  • The Giants non-tendered righty Albert Suarez, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area tweets. Suarez, 28, was not yet eligible for arbitration.
  • Righty Tom Koehler and infielder Ryan Goins are heading to the open market after being non-tendered by the Blue Jays, per a team announcement.
  • The Rays announced that lefty Xavier Cedeno has been non-tendered, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets.
  • The Cubs non-tendered catcher Taylor Davis, per a team announcement. He was not yet eligible for arbitration.
  • Four Rangers players have not been tendered contracts, per a club announcement. Righties Chi Chi Gonzalez, A.J. Griffin, and Nick Martinez have been cut loose along with infielder Hanser Alberto. Griffin ($3.0MM projection) and Martinez ($2.0MM) were both noted as non-tender candidates by MLBTR. The other two players were not yet eligible for arbitration. Gonzalez was a former first-round pick who had struggled of late and underwent Tommy John surgery in July.
  • The Diamondbacks have also non-tendered lefty T.J. McFarland, who had projected at a $1.0MM salary.
  • The Reds non-tendered lefty Kyle Crockett, a pre-arb lefty who was only recently claimed on waivers, per a club announcement.
  • Per a club announcement, the Brewers have non-tendered veteran righty Jared Hughes. He will end up being the only 40-man player not to receive a contract from Milwaukee. Hughes had projected at a $2.2MM arbitration value. The 32-year-old is a master at inducing grounders and has turned in repeatedly excellent results. He also averaged a career-best 93.9 mph on his sinker in 2017.
  • The Mariners have non-tendered lefty Drew Smyly and righty Shae Simmons, per a club announcement. While the former was expected, due to Smyly’s Tommy John surgery, the latter rates as something of a surprise given his cheap $700K projection. Of course, it’s possible the club is not optimistic of his chances of bouncing back from arm troubles.
  • The White Sox will not tender a contract to reliever Jake Petricka, per SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (via Twitter). He had projected to take home $1.1MM in his second trip through the arb process. Also non-tendered, per a club announcement, were righties Zach Putnam and Al Alburquerque as well as infielder Alan Hanson.
  • It seems that righty Bruce Rondon will wind up his tenure with the Tigers, as the organization is set to non-tender him, per Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free-Press (via Twitter). Rondon was long viewed as a potential late-inning arm for the Tigers, but had some notable run-ins with the organization, struggled with control, and never consistently produced at the MLB level. Though he projected to earn just $1.2MM, Rondon will be allowed to find a new organization. He will turn 26 later this month.
  • The Diamondbacks will non-tender righty J.J. Hoover, per SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (via Twitter). Hoover projected at just $1.6MM, but Arizona is watching every penny as it seeks to return to the postseason with a tight payroll situation. The 30-year-old turned in 41 1/3 innings of 3.92 ERA ball in 2017 with 11.8 K/9 but also 5.7 BB/9 on the year.
  • The Royals announced that they have non-tendered outfielder Terrance Gore. Though Gore was not eligible for arbitration, teams occasionally utilize today’s deadline to prune their 40-man rosters. Gore had quite an interesting run with Kansas City, scarcely playing at all during the regular season and then appearing as a speed-and-defense asset in the team’s two storied postseason runs. Now, though the fleet-footed 26-year-old is out of options. With an upper minors OPS that hovers just over .600, Gore just was not going to break camp with the club. It seems reasonable to think there’s a chance he’ll return to the organization on a minors deal, though Gore will also have a shot at exploring the broader market.

Cardinals Will Meet With Giancarlo Stanton’s Representatives

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The Cardinals have a meeting scheduled with representatives of star Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton, according to Jon Morosi of MLB.com (Twitter links). The 2017 NL MVP, who is being shopped as the Marlins seek to trim payroll, has the ability to block any trade by virtue of his full no-trade rights.

Yesterday, Stanton’s reps sat down with the Giants’ brass, so it seems that at least these two organizations have obtained authorization from Miami to discuss their pursuit of Stanton directly with his camp. Tonight’s news rather clearly indicates that there is no deal in place with San Francisco, so it seems there’s still time for the situation to develop before Stanton ends up changing hands. (Of course, it’s also still possible that won’t come to pass.)

With respect to the Giants, there’s also no reason to believe they are out of the race. To the contrary, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald tweets that Miami is still eyeing some of San Francisco’s young talent. He says the Marlins are looking specifically at top Giants prospect Heliot Ramos as well as righty Tyler Beede, first baseman Chris Shaw, and catcher Aramis Garcia — along with major league second bagger Joe Panik. That’s not to say that all of those players would be included in any prospective deal, of course; rather, it seems those are the names in play at the moment.

While it’s within the Marlins’ rights to allow other teams to speak with Stanton, it seems there are at least some parameters to be minded. Per ESPN.com’s Buster Olney, via Twitter, MLB rules require that the team “have a general understanding on trade terms.”

All things considered, this is rather an unusual state of affairs for a trade candidate. But in a year in which Shohei Otani has been recruited like a five-star high school athlete, perhaps it shouldn’t be surprising to see anther unique situation arise.

Certainly, Stanton is a fairly unique asset. Beyond the fact that there’s an opportunity to grab a 28-year-old player who is arguably the game’s preeminent power hitter, his contract creates quite some opportunity and risk. Stanton is owed another $295MM on his long-term deal but also has the right to opt out after three seasons.

Giants Meet With Giancarlo Stanton’s Representatives

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10:42pm: The meeting should not be read as an indication that a deal is about to go down, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro cautions on Twitter. Rather, he says, “a trade is not considered imminent” and the Marlins “remain engaged with other clubs” regarding Stanton.

8:42pm: The Giants have sent executives to meet with representatives of star Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton, according to Craig Mish of Sirius XM (Twitter links). It is not clear whether the meeting, which is said to be taking place in Los Angeles, will also include Stanton himself. Top organizational figures are on hand for the Giants, though,with president of baseball operations Brian Sabean, GM Bobby Evans, and skipper Bruce Bochy all trekking south.

Obviously, such a sit-down could only occur if the Marlins have authorized the discussion. In all likelihood, it seems, permission would only be given if the teams believed they could potentially finalize a deal involving Stanton, whose approval would be needed for any swap given his full no-trade rights.

Earlier today, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch discussed the parameters of possible interactions between Stanton and his pursuers. Of course, he was addressing the point in reference to the Cardinals’ efforts to land the star performer, and it’s not clear at this point whether the St. Louis organization will be afforded such an opportunity.

Throughout the offseason, rumors have surrounded the possibility of the Marlins dealing Stanton — their biggest star, and also the league’s highest-paid player. The west coast native is believed to prefer to play close to his Los Angeles home, but the hometown Dodgers have only operated at the fringes of the market thus far.

Some have suggested of late that the situation — which has seemingly backed into something of a stalemate since the end of the GM Meetings — could end up playing out more slowly. Both Stanton and the Marlins, perhaps, would prefer to see the Dodgers enter the fray. Or, perhaps, other organizations could join the Giants and Cardinals, the clear top two pursuers to this point.

There has been some discussion of possible trade scenarios between the teams, but on the whole it is not clear just what kind of package could be contemplated if the San Francisco brass can convince Stanton to join on. MLB.com’s Jon Morosi discussed a potential return for Stanton in an article earlier today, but also made clear that MLB.com had not confirmed that any of the rumored players had actually been formally offered or asked for. And others — such as Bob Nightengale of USA Today, on Twitter — have cast doubt on the idea that the true potential trade package has yet been stated publicly. There is, however, indication from some quarters that the Giants are willing to take on the bulk or even all of Stanton’s contract, as Jon Heyman of Fan Rag tweets.

With respect to the talks between Stanton’s representatives and his would-be new employers, it’s possible to imagine any number of topics being discussed. No doubt Stanton will be interested to learn more about the organization’s plans to return to contention after a disastrous 2017 campaign. As Nightengale notes in another tweet, though, it’s also possible there could be some contractual negotiations. Because Stanton would stand to take a hit to his bottom line by playing half his games in California, his representatives might conceivably request some kind of compensation.

Giants Have Discussed Andrew McCutchen With Pirates

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The Giants and Pirates have “remained in contact” regarding star outfielder Andrew McCutchen, according to MLB Network’s Jon Morosi (Twitter link). McCutchen could represent an alternative to Giancarlo Stanton for the San Francisco organization, Morosi suggests.

This is the first time we’ve seen the 31-year-old McCutchen come up clearly in trade rumors this winter. He’s owed $14.5MM for the 2018 season and will reach free agency thereafter.

McCutchen is no longer the superstar he once was, but did just wrap up a productive 2017 campaign. In 650 plate appearances, he slashed .279/.363/.486 and hit 28 home runs.

Metrics are not enamored of McCutchen’s glovework in center, so he doesn’t seem like a direct replacement for Denard Span, who’s expected to move into a corner spot. But Cutch’s ability to handle some time up the middle certainly doesn’t hurt. He’s also a far less committing acquisition target than is Stanton.

It’s not immediately clear what it might take to get the Bucs to part with their franchise icon. Moving the salary would help the organization seek some other improvements, though losing McCutchen would also mean creating an immediate hole — even if the team is comfortable relying upon Austin Meadows and/or piecing together some platoon pieces. Given McCutchen’s standing with the fan base, there’s added motivation for the Pirates to hold out for a worthwhile return. And the organization will be cognizant of the possibility of instead dealing him at the trade deadline, if the ballclub does not compete, or making him a qualifying offer at the end of the coming season.

Shohei Ohtani Rumors: Tuesday

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Though Shohei Ohtani has not even yet been officially posted — that’s expected as soon as Friday — the supreme young talent is drawing plenty of attention from MLB organizations. Those clubs received a memorandum over the weekend asking them to provide information to Ohtani and his representatives on a variety of subjects, which is only the beginning of a highly unusual and utterly fascinating recruitment process.

Here’s the latest:

  • Though Ohtani is limited to a signing bonus and a minor league contract in coming to the Major Leagues, he stands to earn substantially more through marketing endorsements, tweets USA Today’s Bob Nightengale. Marketing agents have predicted to Nightengale that between endorsements back in Japan and in the United States, Ohtani could command north of $20MM annually. That’d make him MLB’s highest-paid player in terms of off-the-field revenue.
  • Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic spoke to agent Scott Boras (who was in the running to represent Ohtani before Ohtani signed CAA and Nez Balelo) as well as MLB chief legal officer Dan Halem about Ohtani’s earning capacity. Unsurprisingly, Boras offered sharp criticism of a system that won’t allow Ohtani to top a $3.535MM signing bonus at this point. “He is precocious, greatness cast adrift, forced into the MLB lifeboat,” said the always colorful Boras. “And his admission is handcuffs that prevent him from getting at least what his older, lesser valued peers received—in Tanaka’s case, more than $150 million.” Halem, as one would expect, wholly disagreed with Boras’ notions, pointing out that it was Ohtani who passed on the chance to sign with MLB clubs as an amateur out of high school, which could have jump-started his earning potential. And, it was Ohtani who asked to be posted as an amateur just two years before he could have been posted as a professional. The free column has quite a few quotes from both Boras and Halem on the matter and is well worth a full look.

Earlier Updates

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Giants Outright Orlando Calixte

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  • The Giants announced that infielder/outfielder Orlando Calixte has been outrighted to Triple-A Sacramento after clearing waivers. The 25-year-old batted .143/.185/.163 in 55 MLB plate appearances in San Francisco and hit .243/.283/.421 in 401 Triple-A plate appearances last season. Calixte has seen brief action with the Giants and Royals over the past two seasons and is a career .247/.300/.382 hitter in parts of eight minor league seasons. He was designated for assignment last week when San Francisco was setting its roster prior to the Rule 5 Draft.
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