MLB Rumors

The Philadelphia Phillies have officially hired Dave Dombrowski as their president of baseball operations, the team announced on Friday.

The Athletic's Jayson Stark first reported Thursday that the two sides were in "advanced stages of serious talks."

The team's managing general partner, John Middleton, "approached Dombrowski again this week, after two candidates—the Twins' Thad Levine and the Dodgers' Josh Byrnes—withdrew their names from consideration. This time, after a series of conversations with Middleton and Phillies president Andy MacPhail, Dombrowski decided the Phillies' job was an attractive enough option to revisit."

Dombrowski, 64, had signed a four-year deal to serve as an adviser to Music City Baseball, a group attempting to bring an MLB franchise to Nashville, Tennessee, and told The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal in early November that he wasn't interested in leaving the group to pursue a job with other MLB teams. 

"I'm staying in Nashville," he said. "I gave the individual here (John Loar, the head of Music City Baseball) a commitment when I moved here that as we continue to pursue a new team—expansion, relocation or if it goes nowhere—that I would stay here with them."

In his long and successful front-office career, Dombrowski served as the Montreal Expos general manager (1988-91), the Florida Marlins general manager (1992-2001), the president and general manager of the Detroit Tigers (2002-15) and the vice president of baseball operations for the Boston Red Sox (2016-19).

He won World Series titles with the Marlins (1997) and Red Sox (2018) and also reached the Series with the Tigers twice (2006, 2012).

His experience building winners would make him a solid hire for a Phillies team with some talented pieces in place like Bryce Harper and Aaron Nola, but one that has underachieved since bringing Harper aboard in 2019. It would also mean that the Phillies, believed likely to cut payroll this offseason, might commit to spending money after all. 

The New York Yankees have reportedly discussed deals for starting pitcher Jameson Taillon and first baseman Josh Bell from the Pittsburgh Pirates, according to Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

A 2019 All-Star, Bell tallied a .226/.305/.364 slash line with eight home runs and 22 RBI last season, while Taillon made seven starts with a 4.10 ERA, 1.125 WHIP and 30 strikeouts in 37.1 innings in 2019. The righty underwent surgery to repair his UCL that August forcing him to miss the 2020 season. 

It's unclear what type of package the Yankees would need to offer to land either one or both players.

New York currently lists Luke Voit and Mike Ford at first base on their depth chart, with Voit (.277/.338/.610) leading the league in home runs last season with 22 while starting 56 games. 

The Yankees could use him at designated hitter should a deal come together for Bell.

From a contract standpoint, Bell doesn't offer much in the way of relief. The 28-year-old is due $6 million in 2021 and has one year of arbitration eligibility remaining before becoming a free agent ahead of his age-30 season. Voit, 30, is due $5.8 million this season and won't hit unrestricted free agency until 2025. 

Taillon is on a similar contract as Bell and will become a free agent in 2023. The 29-year-old primarily relies on his fastball and curveball, which could provide New York with solid depth in the back end of a rotation led by Gerrit Cole and Luis Severino. 

The Yankees don't have much they can part with in the way of top prospects—the franchise has just three players in MLB.com's top 100 and none ranked higher than 17-year-old outfielder Jasson Dominguez at No. 48.

The Boston Red Sox reportedly "haven't expressed interest" in signing free-agent pitcher Jon Lester this offseason, according to Rob Bradford of WEEI. 

Lester began his career in Boston and earned three All-Star selections across parts of nine seasons, helping the team bring home World Series titles in 2007 and 2013.

After a brief stint with the Oakland Athletics, the left-hander has spent the last six years with the Chicago Cubs but the team chose not to pick up his $25 million mutual option for 2021, choosing to pay a $10 million buyout.

Lester had some big years in Chicago, earning two more All-Star selections while finishing second in Cy Young voting in 2016. He also won NLCS MVP on the way to help the Cubs win the World Series in 2016.

The 36-year-old has struggled in recent years, however, producing a 4.46 ERA in 2019 and 5.16 ERA in 2020.

Though last year was a small sample size with just 12 starts in the shortened season, his 6.2 strikeouts and 1.6 home runs allowed per nine innings were each the worst of his career. The 5.14 FIP indicated his struggles weren't just bad luck.

The Red Sox could be desperate for pitching after finishing 28th in the majors with a 5.58 team ERA last season.

Lester also indicated he would be willing to return to Boston if the right deal came along.

"I'm open-minded to anything," he said last May, per Bradford. "Absolutely it would be cool to go back and finish my career where it all started."

However, it currently seems like the Red Sox will look for other ways to upgrade the rotation.

Despite missing most of the 2020 season with a shoulder injury, Cole Hamels has reportedly received interest from "several teams" in free agency, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network. 

The 39-year-old would consider having a showcase if needed to show teams he is healthy in person, per Heyman.

Hamels signed a one-year deal with the Atlanta Braves ahead of last season but made just one start while allowing three earned runs in 3.1 innings.

The veteran developed shoulder tendinitis before the start of the shortened season and began the year on the injured list. He finally returned in mid-September but was immediately shut down after one start.

"He said he felt like he just couldn't get anything behind the ball," Braves president Alex Anthopoulos said at the time, per Mark Bowman of MLB.com.

Despite the lost season, Hamels has proved himself to be an elite pitcher in the past with four All-Star selections and a World Series MVP award.

He produced an ERA under 4.00 in nine of his last 10 seasons before 2020, including a 3.81 ERA in 2019 with the Chicago Cubs. He also had 143 strikeouts in 141.2 innings that season while showing he can still fool hitters despite his age.

Teams expecting a bounce back could get good value for a player who knows how to succeed at this level.

Toronto Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins confirmed the organization's interest in free-agent outfielder George Springer on Thursday.

According to Arash Madani of Sportsnet, Atkins said he has connected with Springer's representation on a weekly basis.

Springer, arguably the best player on the market, is a three-time All-Star, two-time Silver Slugger, World Series winner and World Series MVP.

MLB Network's Jon Morosi reported the Jays also have interest in outfielder Marcell Ozuna, who played for the Atlanta Braves last season, but Toronto appears to have Springer higher on its list.

The 31-year-old Springer enjoyed a dominant four-year stretch from 2016-19 that yielded three All-Star nods and three seasons with at least 29 home runs. During that stint, he averaged a .274 batting average, 31 home runs, 84 RBI and 107 runs scored per season.

He got off to a slow start to the shortened 2020 season, but he ended up with some solid numbers, hitting .265 with 14 homers, 32 RBI and 37 runs scored in 51 games.

One thing that makes Springer's production so impressive is that the Astros have used him in the leadoff spot in recent years. He isn't a prototypical leadoff hitter, but he made it work and still put up great power numbers.

Springer is perhaps best known for coming through when the games matter most, evidenced by his 19 home runs, 38 RBI and 43 runs scored in 63 career postseason games. His best performance came in the 2017 World Series when he hit .379 with five homers and seven RBI en route to being named World Series MVP.

He was also great during Houston's surprising run to the American League Championship Series last season with four home runs and nine RBI between the ALDS and ALCS.

The Jays reached the playoffs for the first time since 2016 last season. Although they were swept by the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League Wild Card Series, they have some momentum entering 2021.

Toronto already has a nice collection of young offensive talent, including Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette and Cavan Biggio, but Springer would give the Jays some much-needed experience and a player who knows how to produce and win in the postseason.

Eddie Rosario's surprise non-tender by the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday could turn into a win for the Boston Red Sox.

Per MLB Network's Jon Morosi, the Red Sox have "some interest" in Rosario. 

Morosi noted that Boston manager Alex Cora served as general manager for the Puerto Rico team—of which Rosario was a part—during the 2017 World Baseball Classic. 

Per USA Today's Bob Nightengale, five teams had interest in trading for Rosario but didn't want to pay his projected $10 million arbitration salary. 

Rosario spent his entire professional career with the Twins dating back to 2010 when he was a fourth-round draft pick by the club. 

After spending five years in the minors, Rosario made his Major League Baseball debut in May 2015. He quickly established himself as a tremendous power hitter, starting with leading the league with 15 triples as a rookie. 

Since the 2017 season, Rosario has averaged 24 homers and 76 RBI with a .281/.317/.493 slash line. 

The Red Sox are in the market for an outfielder with Jackie Bradley Jr. eligible for free agency and Andrew Benintendi coming off an injury-plagued season in which he hit .103/.314/.128 in 14 games.

Boston is in need of a quick makeover after finishing last in the American League East in 2020. The offense did finish a respectable 11th in runs scored, but those questions in the outfield could make a player like Rosario a welcome addition to the roster if the two sides can work out a deal.  

The San Francisco Giants are interested in free-agent outfielder Marcell Ozuna, according to MLB Network's Jon Morosi, but there's a major stipulation factoring into the club's pursuit.

Morosi noted the Giants' interest is "somewhat contingent" on whether or not the designated hitter remains in the National League for the 2021 season. 

Ozuna compiled a .338/.431/.636 slash line with league-leading figures in home runs (18) and RBI (56) in 60 games with the Atlanta Braves in 2020. 

The Giants have plenty of capable outfielders heading into 2021, led by Mike Yastrzemski in right field. Alex Dickerson and Mauricio Dubon lined up in left field and center field, respectably. Where San Francisco was thin last year, however, was at DH, when it used Wilmer Flores for 22 games.

Ozuna would certainly provide a massive upgrade, but as one of the most sought-after free agents this offseason—as well as one of the best hitters on the market—the Giants are sure to have plenty of competition if they decide to pursue his services. 

The 30-year-old, who recently switched agents, has been linked to the New York Mets in recent weeks as new owner Steve Cohen announced his intent to spend big money to build a contender. Morosi also linked the Toronto Blue Jays to Ozuna but noted the club prefers outfielder George Springer.

Spotrac currently estimates Ozuna's market value at $20.1 million per season, listing J.D. Martinez, Carlos Santana and Eric Hosmer as players with comparable value