MLB

Now that he is officially a member of the St. Louis Cardinals, Willson Contreras admitted the thought of joining his former team's biggest rival first crossed his mind when he got an in-person look at Albert Pujols' pursuit of 700 homers.

At his introductory press conference on Friday, Contreras said a Sept. 4 game between the Cardinals and Chicago Cubs was when he envisioned himself playing for the other team.

The Cardinals defeated the Cubs, 2-0, with Pujols' pinch-hit two-run homer off Brandon Hughes in the bottom of the eighth inning being the difference.

Contreras was unable to play in the series due to a sprained ankle. He has been around the rivalry between the two National League Central clubs since making his big-league debut in June 2016.

There was a time last season when it seemed like Contreras wouldn't be around to see those September games between the Cubs and Cardinals. He was one of the most talked about players being moved prior to the trade deadline, but no deal ever materialized.

ESPN's Jeff Passan reported Houston Astros owner Jim Crane vetoed a deal in August that would have sent Contreras to Houston in exchange for right-handed pitcher Jose Urquidy.

Even though that one deal didn't go through, it's even more baffling in hindsight the Cubs didn't trade Contreras. There was no indication they even tried to negotiate a new contract with him this offseason after he turned down the qualifying offer.

A trade was expected for Contreras and Ian Happ before the deadline that both players received a standing ovation after a July 26 game at Wrigley Field. The Cubs were going to embark on a road trip that lasted through the trade deadline.

Instead of being able to pick up a player who could have helped them in 2023 and beyond, the Cubs got nothing back and saw Contreras accept a five-year, $87.5 million deal from the Cardinals.

Contreras hit .249/.368/.441 with 15 homers in 95 games against the Cardinals. He will get his first chance to play against the Cubs on May 8 at Wrigley Field.

Aaron Judge cashed in as a free agent by re-signing with the New York Yankees, but the reigning American League MVP had more on his mind this offseason than simply securing the most money possible.

Per Jon Heyman of the New York Post, Judge told all of the teams he met with before making a decision that he "didn't want to surrender his legacy over dollars, and all sides respected that."

Judge made Yankees fans sweat before agreeing to a nine-year, $360 million contract on Wednesday, per The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal.

According to SNY's Andy Martino, Yankees chairperson Hal Steinbrenner spoke with Judge on the phone after the team began to believe the San Diego Padres were offering at least $400 million and the San Francisco Giants "would get" to that number.

The Yankees were offering Judge $320 million over eight years before the call, but Judge told Steinbrenner a ninth year would get the deal done.

Judge played his free agency to perfection. He staged the video of himself arriving in San Francisco earlier in the offseason, presumably to increase the pressure on New York's front office.

Per ESPN's Jeff Passan, Judge flew to the winter meetings in San Diego "at the last minute" to make his decision between the Yankees, Padres and Giants.

It was assumed a reunion between Judge and the Yankees was going to be the final result of this entire scenario. He's spent his entire career with the organization, has led them to six consecutive playoff appearances and had a historic 2022 season.

The Yankees haven't often been a franchise that loses its best players, especially at the peak of their careers. They also had no way of immediately replacing his production in the lineup if he signed elsewhere.

Whatever the full motivation for Judge to re-sign with the Yankees, no one will care if he continues to be one of the best players in Major League Baseball. The 30-year-old has made the All-Star team four times in six full seasons since 2017.

The Yankees have made the American League Championship Series three times during that span, but they haven't advanced to the World Series since 2009.

The New York Mets re-signed outfielder Brandon Nimmo to an eight-year, $162 million deal on Thursday, and the team's 2023 payroll now exceeds $300 million, per Tim Healey of Newsday.

New York's 2023 payroll will be the highest in baseball history, Healey added. It projects to be around $325 million, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post.

However, Sherman notes that the Mets "are going to do more" in free agency, so that figure could rise in the coming weeks and months.

In addition to inking Nimmo, the Mets also signed reliever David Robertson to a one-year, $10 million deal on Thursday, per ESPN's Jeff Passan.

The deals for Nimmo and Robertson are only the latest that Mets management has handed out this winter after losing ace Jacob deGrom to the Texas Rangers in free agency.

Earlier this week, the club signed reigning Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander to a two-year, $86.7 million deal. Star closer Edwin Díaz also put pen to paper on a five-year, $102 million deal, and José Quintana agreed to a two-year, $26 million contract.

The highest earners on the Mets' payroll in 2023 are Scherzer and Verlander, who will both receive $43.3 million next season, per Spotrac. Shortstop Francisco Lindor will earn $34.1 million in 2023, and outfielder Starling Marte will earn $20.8 million.

The 2023 luxury tax threshold is $233 million, and any team that exceeds that amount will need to pay the competitive balance tax. Considering the Mets have blown past that price point, they'll be subject to the tax.

Last season, six teams paid the luxury tax. The Mets were one of them, and considering they fell to the San Diego Padres in the National League Wild Card Series, it should really come as no surprise that the team's payroll will rise in 2023.

It appears the Mets aren't too worried about having to pay the tax as they're pursuing their first World Series title since 1986, and signing elite players to high-cost deals should allow them to do that.

Brandon Nimmo is returning to the New York Mets after the two sides agreed to an eight-year, $162 million contract on Thursday, per ESPN's Jeff Passan.

Nimmo is entering his age-30 season. He's played seven MLB seasons, all of them with the Mets. Last year, he hit .274 (.800 OPS) with 16 home runs, 64 RBI, a team-high 102 runs and a league-high seven triples.

For his career, he has hit .269 (.827 OPS) with 63 home runs and 213 RBI.

Hand and hamstring injuries cut his 2021 season to just 92 games. A bulging disc in his neck led to just 69 games in 2019. A hamstring injury and a partially collapsed lung in 2017 kept him sidelined as well.

Nimmo has hit well when playing full seasons, though. He had an .886 OPS in 2018 (140 games) alongside 17 homers and 47 RBI. During the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign (55 of 60 games), he posted a career-best .888 OPS.

He ended up third on the Mets this season in WAR (wins above replacement) among position players, per Baseball-Reference. His efforts led to New York posting a 101-61 record and earning its first playoff appearance since 2016.

Nimmo will be staying in Queens in hopes of helping lead the Mets to greater playoff heights.

They have a solid offensive core with Pete Alonso, Francisco Lindor, Jeff McNeil, Nimmo and others in the lineup. The team's pitching depth is in question behind Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander, but it does return ace closer Edwin Díaz.

Ultimately, keeping Nimmo is a huge win for the Mets.

Bryce Harper and Trea Turner were teammates on the Washington Nationals from 2015 to 2018. They'll likely be together for a whole lot longer in Philadelphia, with Harper having nine more years on his contract and Turner signing an 11-year, $300 million pact with the Phils this week.

And it was, at least in part, a selling point for Turner.

"We pictured playing with Bryce and [Kyle] Schwarber and a lot of those guys on the team now," Turner said Thursday during his introductory press conference. "It just seemed like a lot of things added up and pointed us in this direction."

Turner and Schwarber were briefly teammates with the Nationals in 2021, before both were dealt ahead of the trade deadline.

With the trio of Harper, Turner and Schwarber headlining the offense, the Phillies should have one of the most formidable lineups in baseball next season, especially once Harper returns from Tommy John surgery.

Superstar pitcher Jacob deGrom left the New York Mets in free agency, signing a five-year, $185 million deal with the Texas Rangers, and he opened up about his decision during a press conference Thursday.

"The Rangers did a great job with constant communication and making me feel like they really wanted me here," deGrom said, per ESPN. "The vision was the same: Build something great and win year in and year out."

DeGrom added that Corey Seager and Marcus Semien, who agreed to significant deals with the Rangers last offseason, played a large role in his decision to join the club.

The right-hander, who has been beset by injuries over the last several years, spent the first nine seasons of his career with the Mets, winning two Cy Young Awards and an ERA title. He was also named to the All-Star Game four times.

In search of a more lucrative deal this winter, deGrom opted out of the final guaranteed year of his pact with the Mets, which was worth $30.5 million (New York held a $32.5 million club option for '24). During his tenure with the club, he went 82-57 with a 2.52 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 1,607 strikeouts in 1,326 innings across 209 starts.

DeGrom's best season came in 2018 when he went 10-9 with a 1.70 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 269 strikeouts in 217 innings across 32 starts.

Last season, he went 5-4 with a 3.08 ERA, 0.75 WHIP and 102 strikeouts in 64.1 innings across 11 starts. He didn't make his season debut until August because of a stress reaction in his right scapula.

The Rangers hope deGrom can stay healthy and headline their rotation for years to come. He joins a group that includes Jon Gray, Jake Odorizzi, Martín Pérez and the newly signed Andrew Heaney.

If all goes to plan, the Rangers could make a postseason appearance in 2023 for the first time since 2016.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have signed five-time Gold Glover Jason Heyward to a minor league contract that includes an invitation to spring training, the team announced Thursday, per ESPN's Alden Gonzalez.

Heyward began his career with the Atlanta Braves in 2010, finishing second in Rookie of the Year voting and earning his only All-Star Game selection. In his five seasons with the club, he slashed .262/.351/.429 with 84 home runs and 292 RBI in 681 games, in addition to winning two Gold Gloves.

The Braves traded Heyward to the St. Louis Cardinals before the 2015 campaign. In his lone season with the franchise, he hit .293/.359/.439 with 13 home runs and 60 RBI in 154 games. He also earned another Gold Glove award.

He then agreed to an eight-year, $184 million deal with the Chicago Cubs before the 2016 campaign. He earned two Gold Gloves with the Cubs and helped the team capture the 2016 World Series title, but he never lived up to the contract offensively. He was released in November.

Heyward's performance at the plate over the last two seasons has been particularly poor. In 2021, he slashed .214/.280/.347 with eight home runs and 30 RBI in 104 games. He appeared in just 48 games for the Cubbies in 2022, hitting .204/.278/.277 with one home run and 10 RBI.

In Los Angeles, it's possible the 33-year-old will find himself back on a major league roster in 2023, especially if he puts together a strong performance in spring training.

The Dodgers saw outfielder Cody Bellinger sign a one-year deal with the Cubs this winter after they non-tendered him, and they could use some depth in both left and center field alongside Trayce Thompson and Chris Taylor.

The Boston Red Sox raised some eyebrows on Wednesday when they signed outfielder Masataka Yoshida to a five-year, $90 million contract, and many are still confused by the deal.

ESPN's Kiley McDaniel spoke to "10 sources" who all "thought the Red Sox overpaid by a hefty margin." One executive went as far as to say, "We thought he was worth less than half of what they paid."

Yoshida played seven seasons with the Orix Buffaloes, the reigning Japan Series champions. This past season, he hit .335/.447/.561 with 21 home runs, 80 walks and 41 strikeouts in 508 plate appearances. In his career, he's hit .326/.419/.538 with just 307 strikeouts in 3,251 plate appearances.

However, there are many around the league that believe Yoshida is simply not worth the price Boston paid, which included a $15.4 million posting fee to the Buffaloes. He will turn 30 in July and projects to be limited defensively. McDaniel stated that he played 79 games as a designated hitter against just 40 games in the outfield.

While there are question marks about his ability to be an every day outfielder, Yoshida's impressive hitting ability could make up for any defensive woes.

McDaniel stated: "Everyone I spoke with likes his swing and thinks he has average raw power, which if tapped into would translate to the 18-20 homer area that he has already demonstrated. A rival exec with a rosier projection put it this way: 'Our evals think he can really hit ... a little rich but not totally out of bounds if you're REALLY buying into the bat.'"

The Red Sox are known for their tight spending habits, so the fact that they broke the bank for Yoshida is telling of their belief in him. Only time will tell if Boston's gamble pays off.