MLB

The San Diego Padres' decision to sign Xander Bogaerts as a free agent opens up the question about Fernando Tatis Jr.'s long-term outlook with the organization.

Per ESPN's Alden Gonzalez, Tatis has " always been adamant" about playing shortstop.

Bogaerts made it clear during his introductory press conference on Dec. 9 he is still planning to play shortstop.

"I play infield. I play shortstop," he told reporters.

The Padres don't actually have to worry about appeasing Tatis' apparent desire to play shortstop right at the start of the 2023 season. He isn't eligible to play until April 20 as he finishes out the rest of his 80-game suspension after testing positive for a banned substance.

Tatis missed the entire 2022 season recovering from offseason wrist surgery and the suspension. The 23-year-old has experience playing a different position. He was used in the outfield two years ago to ease the physical burden on him due to a shoulder injury.

When it looked like he was going to be a contributor last season, Tatis told reporters he would be open to playing a position other than shortstop.

"Wherever they need me," he said. "We're going to talk. But I've been [rehabbing] mostly at shortstop so far. I've been moving around everywhere, but it's been mostly shortstop so far."

Gonzalez did note Tatis "seemed so lethargic" playing the outfield in 2021 and there is "eroding trust" from the Padres in the All-Star talent.

Some of the trust issues may stem from Tatis' durability. He missed 78 games as a rookie in 2019 and 32 games in 2021. But there are also potential issues off the field. His wrist injury last year was the result of a motorcycle crash.

Tatis seemed to indicate when asked about the crash during spring training that it's happened more than once.

Padres manager Bob Melvin made it clear Tatis won't be riding motorcycles anymore.

Even though the Padres currently have a logjam on the left side of their infield, there are reasons to think that signing Bogaerts to an 11-year contract doesn't necessarily mean they will be trying to move on from Tatis.

Bogaerts has generally been a below-average defensive player throughout his career. It seems unlikely he will get better as a shortstop now that he is 30 years old.

There's also the possibility 2023 will be Manny Machado's final season with the Padres. The six-time All-Star has an opt-out in his contract. Given how much money teams have been spending this offseason, there's no reason he can't cash in with one more big contract while he's in his prime.

San Diego also has to think about trying to re-sign Juan Soto, who can become a free agent after the 2024 season.

For all of Tatis' flaws, he is still an incredible offensive player. The two-time Silver Slugger winner has a .292/.369/.596 slash line in 273 career games.

San Diego's spending spree over the past three seasons makes it seem unlikely the team would try to move Tatis. He significantly increases the team's chances of making the World Series when he plays.

The Padres reached the National League Championship Series last season for the first time since 1998.

The New York Yankees bolstered their starting rotation Thursday by signing left-hander Carlos Rodón, per Jon Heyman of the New York Post.

Rodón's new contract will reportedly earn him $162 million over six years and includes a full no-trade clause. USA Today's Bob Nightengale provided a contract breakdown, noting that Rodón will receive $22 million in 2023 as well as a $5 million signing bonus:

The addition of Rodón brings New York's projected total payroll to $247.2 million, per Spotrac.

The 30-year-old joins a star-studded rotation that includes Gerrit Cole, Nestor Cortes, Luis Severino and Frankie Montas. With Rodón added to the mix, the Yankees' starting pitching staff has the chance to be among the best in the American League.

Rodón will likely be inserted as the No. 2 starter behind Cole, who led the majors and set a franchise record with 257 strikeouts last season. Rodón wasn't too far behind with 237 strikeouts, giving New York a lethal one-two combination.

An All-Star in each of the least two seasons, Rodón notched a 2.88 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP in 178 innings on his way to a 14-8 record in 2022. He appears to have fully recovered from his 2019 Tommy John surgery to become one of the most consistent pitchers in MLB.

The Yankees rotation was dominated by right-handers last season, with 2022 All-Star Cortes as the team's only southpaw. Rodón gives New York another lefty hurler, which will surely pay off come playoff time.

With multiple pitchers who have ace potential, the Yankees have increased their chances at making it back to the World Series for the first time since 2009.

The New York Yankees are going to have one of the best rotations in baseball in 2023.

The Yankees signed free-agent pitcher Carlos Rodón to a six-year, $162 million contract, ESPN's Jeff Passan reported Thursday. He joins a rotation that already included Gerrit Cole, Nestor Cortes and Luis Severino.

Rodón, who spent the first seven years of his career with the Chicago White Sox, had a breakout campaign in 2021. He went 13-5 with a 2.37 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 185 strikeouts in 132.2 innings across 24 starts en route to his first All-Star Game selection.

He signed with the San Francisco Giants ahead of the 2022 season and earned his second straight All-Star Game selection after going 14-8 with a 2.88 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 237 strikeouts in 178 innings across 31 starts.

Rodón will be expected to replicate that success in Pinstripes in 2023 and beyond as the Yankees hope to win their first World Series title in more than a decade.

MLB Twitter is already hyped about the signing and the Yankees' "stacked" 2023 rotation:

The Yankees have been one of the best teams in baseball for a while now, but they have been lacking the extra piece to get them over the hump and into the World Series. Could Rodón be the missing piece to the puzzle?

Only time will tell.

The New York Yankees accomplished what was surely their top goal of the offseason when they brought back Aaron Judge, but they are reportedly striking out in trade efforts regarding Aaron Hicks and Josh Donaldson.

According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the Bronx Bombers "have been unable to find takers" for either player.

Heyman noted "Donaldson's presence and pay were one reason Carlos Correa couldn't work for them."

Correa agreed to a 13-year, $350 million deal with the San Francisco Giants, the richest contract for a shortstop in MLB history. That would have been quite the pact for the Yankees to put on top of the nine-year, $360 million deal they agreed to with Judge.

As for Donaldson, he is set to make $21 million in 2023, and his deal features a $6 million mutual option in 2024. He also made $21 million in each of the last three years.

While there was a time when he was one of the best sluggers in baseball, those days are behind him.

He slashed .222/.308/.374 with 15 home runs and 62 RBI last season. Those numbers are a far cry from when he was the American League MVP for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2015 and slashed .297/.371/.568 with 41 home runs and 123 RBI.

Donaldson is also 37 years old and hit an abysmal .172 in the playoffs for the Yankees last season.

It seems like no teams are that interested in an aging player who was not particularly productive last season and is set to make a head-turning amount of money in 2023.

As for Hicks, his contract is more affordable at $10.5 million in 2023 before it drops to $9.5 million the next two years ahead of a $12.5 million club option in 2026. Yet that would be a longer commitment than the one to Donaldson, and any team trading for him couldn't tell its fans at least he has an MVP on his resume.

The 33-year-old Hicks, who has been injury-prone through his career, slashed .216/.330/.313 with eight home runs and 40 RBI last season after hitting just .194 in 2021.

The New York Yankees acquired outfielder Andrew Benintendi from the Kansas City Royals at the 2022 trade deadline, but it appears they aren't willing to re-sign the free agent to a five-year deal, per Jon Heyman of the New York Post.

The Pinstripes are still interested in retaining Benintendi, they just aren't open to that length.

Brendan Kuty of NJ.com reported Dec. 9 that retaining Benintendi is a "top task" for the Yankees this winter.

Benintendi also told the Yankees at the end of the season that he would be interested in coming back, according to Kuty, and general manager Brian Cashman reiterated his desire to retain the veteran outfielder.

The 28-year-old is coming off one of his best years. He hit .304/.373/.399 with five home runs and 51 RBI in 126 games. However, he slashed just .254/.331/.404 with two home runs and 12 RBI in 33 games with the Yankees before being sidelined with a broken hamate bone in September.

New York was hopeful Benintendi could return during the team's postseason run, but he never made it back into the lineup as the Yankees were swept out of the American League Championship Series by the Houston Astros.

The Yankees will have stiff competition for Benintendi's services. The Astros, Toronto Blue Jays, Chicago White Sox, Tampa Bay Rays and Miami Marlins have all been linked to the 2021 Gold Glove winner.

If the Yankees can't keep Benintendi, the team would have to rely on a combination of Aaron Hicks and potentially Giancarlo Stanton in left field, which isn't ideal. They could also shift their focus elsewhere.

The Yankees have also been linked to Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Bryan Reynolds, who requested a trade from the club earlier this month. Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported on Dec. 4 that New York is "very much" in on Reynolds.

After the Boston Red Sox lost Xander Bogaerts to the San Diego Padres in free agency, signing third baseman Rafael Devers to a contract extension has become the team's "No. 1 priority," per Jon Heyman of the New York Post.

Additionally, one baseball executive believes the Red Sox have to give Devers "whatever he wants" because they can't afford to lose him when he becomes an unrestricted free agent after next season.

Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said in a text message to Heyman that the club's efforts to retain Devers "are only intensifying" and getting him locked up is "something we've really wanted to do for a while and hopefully we'll be able to find that path."

Bogaerts signed an 11-year, $280 million deal with the Padres after being low-balled by the Red Sox, and Boston will likely need to pay Devers at least the $300 million he is asking to get him to stay in town beyond the 2023 campaign.

In July, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe reported that the Red Sox "identified Matt Olson's eight-year, $168 million extension with Atlanta as a basis for discussions" with Devers, which seems laughable after the spending spree teams went on in this winter's market.

However, sports analyst Marino Pepén (h/t MLB insider Héctor Gómez) reported in November that the Red Sox have been inching closer to Devers' $300 million asking price, with the difference in conversations being around $50 million.

With all of the talent that has departed Boston since 2018, keeping Devers around should be more than a priority for the Red Sox.

The 26-year-old earned his second straight All-Star Game selection in 2022 after slashing .295/.358/.521 with 27 home runs and 88 RBI in 141 games. He won a Silver Slugger award in 2021 and helped the Red Sox capture the World Series title in 2018.

In 689 games across six seasons, Devers is hitting .283/.342/.512 with 139 home runs and 455 RBI. Considering his youth, he has the potential to be a Boston great.

San Francisco Giants veteran Brandon Crawford is arguably the greatest shortstop in franchise history, but the arrival of star free agent Carlos Correa presents a different challenge for the 35-year-old.

The Athletic's Andrew Baggarly reports that Crawford was informed he will be switching positions this offseason and Correa, who signed a 13-year, $350 million deal on Tuesday, will be San Francisco's everyday shortstop.

Per Baggarly, Crawford received a phone call from team president Farhan Zaidi and manager Gabe Kapler "less than 15 minutes" after news broke of Correa's signing. Prior to that, there were no discussions of the four-time Gold Glove winner switching positions.

Despite his surprise, Crawford seemed to take the news in stride in a text to Baggarly:

"With the signing of a player as good as Carlos, our team definitely got much better. He's been one of the better players in the league for years, and it's obviously exciting to get a player of his caliber to San Francisco. That being said, he is a shortstop and since the signing the other day, I've been told that that's where he'll stay, so that puts me in a much different situation than I've ever been faced with in professional baseball. So, the rest of this off-season, spring training, and during the season, I will be working my hardest to be the best I can be at a different position and help us get back to the postseason."

While Crawford is likely better suited to moving to second or third base to facilitate the addition of Correa, Baggarly wrote that Crawford "declined to address what his role could be or what position would represent the easiest transition, saying he has been given a rough outline but conversations are still in the beginning stages."

Crawford has spent his entire 12-year major league career with the Giants. He's a three-time All-Star and helped lead San Francisco to two World Series titles in 2012 and 2014. His 1,525 games exclusively at shortstop trails only Derek Jeter (2,674), Luis Aparicio (2,581), Ozzie Smith (2,511), Elvis Andrus (1,906) and J.J. Hardy (1,544).

The 2023 season is the final year on Crawford's contract, and Baggarly noted that there's a chance he considers retirement next winter.

The left-handed hitter is coming off a down year in 2022, hitting .231 with nine homers and 52 RBI. He hopes to return to the 2021 form that saw him hit .298 with 24 home runs and 90 RBI to finish fourth in NL MVP voting.

Longtime St. Louis Cardinals' play-by-play television announcer Dan McLaughlin won't return to Bally Sports Midwest's broadcasts of the Cards after being arrested for his third DWI last week, per Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

"Dan McLaughlin will not return as the Cardinals television play-by-play announcer on Bally Sports Midwest," the team and station said in a joint statement. "Dan has been the voice of memorable Cardinals moments for 24 years. We thank him for his contributions to Cardinals baseball, to Cardinals fans and for his many charitable efforts."

McLaughlin, 48, would have been entering his 25th season season in the role. He said the decision was mutual.

"I have spent the last several days reflecting on my steps towards addressing my health and the well-being of my family and me," his statement read. "I have come to the conclusion that my sole focus needs to be on my recovery, which I have started, and that of my wife and (four) children.

"As a result, I am stepping away from my duties at Bally Sports Midwest," he continued. "I thank all of the people of Bally for their support throughout the years and wish them the best. As I move forward, I please ask for your patience and your privacy. Thank you. God Bless."

McLaughlin had also served as an announcer for St. Louis University men's basketball. He will also not return to those telecasts.

His previous arrests for DWI came in 2010 and 2011. He was sentenced to two years of probation after the first incident and had his license suspended for 90 days after the second.

Last week's arrest carried with it a felony charge for being a "persistent" offender.

After his arrest, McLaughlin said he was "deeply remorseful" and added he would make "no excuses. I'm dealing with this and seeking the treatment that I need."

His next court hearing is Feb. 7.

Xander Bogaerts is no longer on the Boston Red Sox after he joined the San Diego Padres this offseason, and the American League East team is reportedly interested in a high-profile replacement.

According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, Boston is "seriously considering star free agent Dansby Swanson." The Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers are also listed as suitors, as are the Atlanta Braves, the team with which he's spent his entire seven-year major league career.

It has been quite the offseason for shortstops, as Bogaerts agreed to an 11-year, $280 million contract with the Padres, Trea Turner reached an 11-year, $300 million agreement with the Philadelphia Phillies and Carlos Correa topped them all with the richest contract for a shortstop in history at 13 years and $350 million with the San Francisco Giants.

Those deals, along with the fact that there are multiple suitors, puts Swanson in quite the negotiating position.

So did his 2022 campaign, as he was an All-Star and Gold Glove winner while slashing .277/.329/.447 with 25 home runs, 96 RBI and 18 stolen bases for the Atlanta Braves. He is also theoretically in the middle of his prime at 28 years old.

From Boston's perspective, signing Swanson would help mitigate the loss of Bogaerts and allow it to keep Trevor Story at second base. Its defense would benefit from having a glove like Swanson's up the middle.

The Vanderbilt product doesn't have the same track record that Turner, Correa and Bogaerts do and will likely land a smaller contract as a result, but he is still in a position to be paid generously.

The Red Sox could be desperate for some good news as well considering they missed the playoffs at 78-84 last season and have now lost two franchise cornerstones in recent years in Mookie Betts and Bogaerts.

Adding Swanson would at least help them move in the other direction as they look to compete in a difficult American League East that features a number of realistic playoff contenders.