MLB Rumors

We're just a few weeks away from the start of MLB free agency, and the rumors are starting to fly fast and furious.

Let's go around the league and examine some news and notes.

Zack Wheeler to the Twin Cities?

After getting pulverized by the Yankees in a three-game ALDS sweep, it became clearer than ever that the Minnesota Twins need an upgrade in their starting rotation this offseason.

Well, they're in luck, as this year boasts one of the strongest starter markets in some time, and the Twins are already starting to test the waters.

Per Darren Wolfson of 1500 SKOR North Radio, the Twins met with former Mets starter Zack Wheeler and his representation at last week's GM Meetings. Nothing has come of that pairing just yet, but he would seem a natural fit in Minnesota.

The 29-year-old is not necessarily ace material, but he is a classic, competent mid-rotation arm, posting an 11-8 record with a 3.96 ERA and ranking top-10 in the National League with 195.1 innings pitched last year.

With most other Twins starters outside of Jose Berrios coming off poor seasons, Wheeler's start-to-start consistency could be a breath of fresh air for Minnesota and push it deeper into playoff contention. 

Ryan Zimmerman, Former National?

The 15-year partnership between corner infielder Ryan Zimmerman and the Washington Nationals might be coming to an end.

Let's not get too carried away just yet, though. The Nationals declined the 35-year-old's $18 million club option for 2020, but they remain interested in a cheaper short-term partnership, per the Washington Post's Jesse Dougherty.

In the same article, though, it was reported the two sides had not yet convened as of general manager Mike Rizzo's press conference on November 12. 

It's still quite possible Zimmerman—the Nationals' first-ever draft pick—dons the red, white, and blue once again in 2020. Unlike other major sports, a degree of franchise loyalty still exists in Major League Baseball. But as of yet, there's no guarantee he will return to the capital.

Philly Wants to Lock Up Realmuto

The Philadelphia Phillies are prioritizing a contract extension for two-time All Star catcher JT Realmuto this winter, per NBC Sports Philadelphia's Jim Salisbury (and Phillies GM Matt Klentak, if you're interested in hearing it straight from the horse's mouth). 

The 28-year-old has one more season left on his current deal, so this note doesn't pertain directly to the upcoming free-agency period, but he's arguably been the best catcher in baseball over the last three years and will command a big deal from Philly, limiting its flexibility to pursue big-ticket free agents such as Gerrit Cole or Anthony Rendon this winter. 

The Phillies are going about this smartly, as Salisbury also reported they might sign Realmuto to a one-year, $10.5 million contract this offseason in order to preserve cap space for 2020.

Nevertheless, though, potentially sidelining a heavyweight such as the Phillies could position teams like the Dodgers, Yankees or other dark horses to land the top-billed free agents this winter.

The San Diego Padres could be targeting a long-time division rival in free agency. 

The team reportedly has interest in former San Francisco Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner and representatives from the two sides are set to meet at the general manager meetings, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network.

Heyman also noted the squad has been "connected" to Stephen Strasburg.

Strasburg would be an ideal fit for the Padres as a San Diego native coming off a World Series MVP campaign with the Washington Nationals. However, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune recently reported the team "will not be in the market" for him if the price remains high.

Bumgarner could come at a more reasonable price after producing a career-low 3.90 ERA last season after a pair of injury-filled seasons.

Of course, the 30-year-old remains an elite option in free agency thanks to his career 3.13 ERA across 11 seasons while earning four All-Star selections. He has been especially dominant in the playoffs with an 8-3 record and 2.11 ERA in 16 appearances, helping the Giants win three World Series titles.

He was named NLCS MVP and WS MVP during the 2014 title run. 

The left-hander has also been mostly durable in his career with over 200 innings in seven of the last nine years. His 34 starts in 2019 showed that he was past his injury troubles from 2017 and 2018.

His addition would be huge for a San Diego staff that ranked 12th in the National League with a 4.60 ERA and had 16 different players start a game. 

With 17 career starts already at Petco Park, Bumgarner could feel right at home.

The New York Yankees figure to aggressively pursue starting pitching during this winter's free agency, and one player they have on their radar is Madison Bumgarner.

"I will definitely talk to Bumgarner's agency," Yankees general manager Brian Cashman told John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle at the general manager meetings. "I haven't. But I will."

The Yankees won't be alone in their potential pursuit of Bumgarner, however. Two teams to monitor when it comes to his services are the Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic:

"The Phillies are likely to cast a wide net for starting pitching, and can not be ruled out for the top free agent, right-hander Gerrit Cole. But they also could sign Cole Hamels and another free-agent starter—say, left-hander Madison Bumgarner—for less than half of what it would take to get Cole.

"Yes, the Phils have checked in on Bumgarner, and likely are motivated to keep him away from the Braves, their NL East rivals. The Braves are the team closest to Bumgarner’s hometown of Hickory, N.C., and seem a more natural fit for him than the Phillies."

"We'd like to add to the rotation in some capacity," Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos told Shea. "Where that leads us, I don't know yet."

For teams in need of top-end starting pitching, this winter is a good one to be in the market. Cole is the headliner, but Stephen Strasburg, Bumgarner, Zack Wheeler, Hyun-Jin Ryu, Jake Odorizzi, Hamels and Dallas Keuchel make it a deep talent pool to chase. 

Cashman previously said the Yankees would also reach out to Cole and Strasburg.

"Of course, we're going to talk to Strasburg. We'll talk to Cole. We'll talk to the higher-end guys clearly and have conversations there," he said, per Ronald Blum of the Associated Press. "And we'll also talk about some surprise guys, I'm sure."

The Yankees have one of the more fearsome lineups in all of baseball and a fantastic bullpen, but adding a top-of-the-line starter to their rotation should be a priority. And while the 30-year-old Bumgarner hasn't been one of the game's truly elite pitchers since 2016, with injury-plagued years in 2017-18, he's coming off a solid campaign.

Bumgarner finished 9-9 with a 3.90 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 203 strikeouts in 207.2 innings this past season. And it's important to remember that he has been downright dominant in October, with an 8-3 record in the postseason that includes a 2.11 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, three shutouts, three complete games, three World Series titles and 87 strikeouts in 102.1 innings. 

For a team with title aspirations like the Yankees, getting that level of performance in October would be huge. Bumgarner would be a strong addition, though there will be competition for his services. 

"He's been a tremendous player for a long time," Cashman said. "We're going to look at everybody that's out there, obviously. Starting pitching is important, and he's been one of the game's better starting pitchers for a long time. So we'll certainly have a conversation."

We're now less than three weeks away from the start of free agency, and the rumor mill is picking up more and more steam each day. 

The 2019 free-agent class is fairly strong up top, headlined by the likes of World Series champions Anthony Rendon and Stephen Strasburg as well as other All-Stars such as Gerrit Cole, Madison Bumgarner, and Hyun-Jin Ryu. However, most current rumors do not revolve around them as much as middle-tier starters with a chance to be value signings for potential contenders. We've rounded up a few such rumors here.

Gerrit Cole Going North?

Fresh off a dominant 2019 season and on the verge of perhaps winning his first Cy Young Award, Gerrit Cole is primed to receive a record-setting payday this winter. There have been reports of interest everywhere from the Yankees to the Dodgers, but the Philadelphia Phillies would like to enter the bidding as well. 

Per the Philadelphia Inquirer's Matt Breen, Cole is at the top of Philly's offseason signing list. This marriage would make a lot of sense from the Phillies' perspective, not only because he is a generational talent but because starting pitching is a serious area of need. Philadelphia's starting pitchers managed a poor 4.64 ERA last season, and only Aaron Nola made at least ten starts and recorded an ERA less than 4.00. 

After a relatively disappointing year where they failed to make the playoffs, the Phillies might be in desperation mode. Signing a big-time free agent like Cole this winter after landing Bryce Harper last winter could re-route them towards contention.

Reds Interested in Kendrick

Howie Kendrick's late-career renaissance has been one of the more surprising stories in baseball these past few years, and one of last season's most surprising teams is looking to snag his veteran leadership. Per The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal, the Cincinnati Reds are making a bid to land the championship-winning second baseman. 

Though the Reds finished 12 games below .500 last year, breakout seasons from the likes of Eugenio Suarez, Luis Castillo and Sonny Gray made them a fun team to watch despite never seriously competing for a postseason berth. 

With second base being perhaps Cincinnati's biggest positional need thanks to subpar seasons from Jose Peraza and Derek Dietrich, Kendrick's still-live bat combined with his postseason experience could make him a good fit in the Queen City. 

Ozuna Out of St. Louis?

In what would be a big blow to their continued postseason chances, the St. Louis Cardinals look to be on the verge of losing one of their heaviest hitters.

Per MLB Network's Jon Heyman, there appears to be a big market for outfielder Marcell Ozuna, and as such, Heyman reports the 29-year old is likely to decline his qualifying offer from the Cardinals and become an unrestricted free agent. 

Ozuna slugged just .243/.330/.474 in the 2019 regular season but came alive in October, leading regular Cardinal hitters with a .324 batting average and .954 OPS despite the team's dreadful hitting in the NLCS against the Washington Nationals. Teams with subpar outfield depth include the Chicago White Sox, San Francisco Giants, and Oakland Athletics, and all of them could use Ozuna's services if he indeed follows through and rejects St. Louis' qualifying offer.

The Chicago White Sox are considering holding onto first baseman Jose Abreu. 

ESPN's Jeff Passan reported Friday that the club and three-time All-Star "have discussed a long-term deal." 

"Abreu, 32, is facing a tough market for aging first basemen—and has a qualifying offer attached to him," Passan added. "Teams already are loath to go in big at that age and position. The [qualifying offer] could make it even tougher."

Abreu appeared in 159 games for the White Sox in 2019. The 2014 American League Rookie of the Year led the AL with 123 RBI and also posted 33 home runs on a .284/.330/.503 slash line.

On Nov. 4, USA Today's Bob Nightengale relayed that Abreu had received a $17.8 million qualifying offer from Chicago. He has 10 days from that date to whether he will accept it or decline to become an unrestricted free agent. 

Sox general manager Rick Hahn told reporters following the season in September that "there's that mutual desire" to keep Abreu in Chicago somehow (h/t NBC Sports Chicago's Vinnie Duber):

"With Jose, we've heard his thoughts that even if we don't re-sign him he's going to re-sign himself. We've heard Jerry's thoughts about he's always going to wear a White Sox uniform. I don't think they are going to be teaching this in negotiation classes in college any time soon how this one is unfolding. But my takeaway from all that is that there's a strong desire on both sides to figure out a way to keep Jose in a White Sox uniform beyond this year.

"We've been in these situations before. It seems fairly similar to the Paul Konerko situation after ‘05 and again after '09, when we re-signed him again. Paulie went deep into free agency and talked to other clubs, and we still found a way to bring him back. I don't know quite the path it's going to follow with Jose just yet, but more often than not, when there's that mutual desire to figure out a way to get something done, you wind up getting something done."

Abreu had said back in July that he didn't "want to leave here" because he felt the White Sox are building "something very big."

Chicago's 72-89 record in 2019 compared to its 62-100 2018 campaign would indicate that the White Sox are moving in the right direction. 

Keeping Abreu in the fold for 2020 makes all the sense in the world given the only other first baseman currently on the club's roster is 24-year-old Zack Collins, who just concluded his rookie year. However, the organization drafted first baseman Andrew Vaughn with the third overall pick in June's draft—MLB.com's top first-base prospect. 

Vaughn's development is something to consider in relation to the White Sox's long-term commitment to Abreu.

ESPN's Jeff Passan reported Friday that the Texas Rangers will take a look at third baseman Josh Donaldson, who spent the 2019 season with the Atlanta Braves. 

"The Texas Rangers have expressed interest in Josh Donaldson as they head into an offseason in which they have money to spend," Passan wrote. "The Rangers are making third base and starting pitching a priority, and Donaldson is coming off a phenomenal season with Atlanta."

The Braves offered Donaldson a $17.8 million qualifying offer, per David O'Brien of The Athletic, but it is expected that the third baseman will turn it down and officially become a free agent.

The 2015 American League MVP rebounded from an injury-shortened 2018 campaign to post 37 home runs, 94 RBI and a .900 OPS for the National League East-winning Braves, whose 97 wins were the second-most in the Senior Circuit.

Donaldson, who will turn 34 in December, has hit 219 homers and slugged .509 during a nine-year career for the Oakland Athletics, Toronto Blue Jays, Cleveland Indians and Braves. He is a three-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger.

The Rangers currently don't have a long-term answer at third base.

In 2019, six players played the position for Texas. Asdrubal Cabrera appeared there the most with 93 games, but the Rangers released him midseason. Logan Forsythe (33 games) is a free agent, and Isiah Kiner-Falefa (25 games) is a utility infielder who also moonlights at catcher and second base.

Texas is also in need of a little more pop in the lineup after the team finished eighth in the American League in OPS and home runs.

Donaldson can certainly help in that regard, and a move to the second-most hitter-friendly stadium in Globe Life Park in Arlington (per ESPN's MLB Park Factors) could provide a further boost to his numbers.

As Passan noted, the Rangers have some payroll flexibility. Per Cot's Baseball Contracts, the team has just $85,499,999 committed for the 2020 season. That number drops to $40,416,000 in 2021.

For context, Texas has the 19th-highest payroll in the bigs last year at $118,274,435. Unless Texas is planning on cutting costs severely, the room should be there to potentially land Donaldson.

However, the Rangers would have competition in the Braves.

Atlanta general manager Alex Anthopoulos made the following remarks on Donaldson, per O'Brien:

"From the outset, the hope was that he would have a great year and we'd be in this position to bring him back. Obviously, a qualifying offer made sense for us, but we haven't changed our stance that we'd like to have him back, and we'll talk to him. But he's earned the right to test the market and talk to clubs and get a sense of his value. So, we'll keep open communication and dialogue and stay close to his agent, and we're going to have to let the process play out. Ultimately, like I said, it's not salary arbitration, it's free agency. He'll have a chance to see what his value is on the free-agent market, and at that point, hopefully, we can line up on a deal with him."

The Braves' 2020 season begins on Thursday, March 26, in a road matchup with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Once the Washington Nationals completed their World Series victory over the Houston Astros, it was only a matter of time before MLB's hot stove started heating up.

Temperatures are starting to warm, and it has baseball's rumor mill spinning.

Could the Atlanta Braves have identified their next ace? Will the New York Yankees soon lock up one of their long-term outfielders? We'll examine those questions and more below.

Atlanta Braves Making Madison Bumgarner a Priority?

The Atlanta Braves boasted one of the most electric offenses in baseball this past season, following the likes of Ronald Acuna Jr. and Freddie Freeman to top-10 finishes in runs, homers and batting average.

But their rotation had enough holes to short-circuit their playoff run in the NL Division Series.

After finishing just eighth in the league during the regular season with 873 innings, the Braves' starters again struggled providing length in the playoffs. Atlanta's starters never made it through five innings during the three playoff losses, including an abysmal one-third-inning effort by Mike Foltynewicz in Atlanta's elimination game.

Naturally, the Braves now have eyes on one of the best innings-eaters in this free-agent class.

According to NBC Sports' Alex Pavlovic, Atlanta has made Madison Bumgarner "a priority and planned to quickly communicate that to the left-hander."

Bumgarner hasn't been as sharp since a dirt bike accident in 2017, but he still threw 207.2 innings over 34 starts this past season, both of which would have paced Atlanta's staff.

A decorated postseason performer and three-time World Series champion, he has spent his entire career with the San Francisco Giants. But the North Carolina native could be ready for a change of scenery after the Giants have missed each of the past three postseasons.

Yankees, Brett Gardner Discussing New Deal?

Speaking of long-tenured players, Brett Gardner has been a fixture in the New York Yankees outfield since his big-league debut in 2008.

The 36-year-old is entering free agency, but that doesn't mean he'll have to fill out any change of address forms.

MLB Network's Jon Heyman reports the Yankees and Gardner "are already talking about trying to stay together contractually."

While not the same speed threat he once was, Gardner remains a force at the plate. He belted a career-best 28 homers this past season, while also notching personal bests in RBI (74) and OPS (.829).

The fact he's played at least 140 games each of the past seven seasons should make him all the more appealing to New York. The Yankees already lost Aaron Hicks for the foreseeable future to Tommy John surgery, and they can't know what to expect from oft-injured slugger Giancarlo Stanton, who played just 18 games this past year.

Martin Prado Calling It Quits?

After 14 seasons in the big leagues, Martin Prado may have had enough.

The free-agent veteran infielder "has told friends he will likely retire," per Heyman.

A consistent contact hitter throughout his career, the 36-year-old had struggled to shake the injury bug the past few seasons. The 104 games he played this past season were not only a three-year high, they were actually more appearances than he'd made the past two years combined (91).

Even when he played, it was clear he wasn't the same. A career .287 hitter, he managed just a .241 batting average the past three seasons and had just a .276 on-base percentage over that stretch. He also hit just five homers in that time, a low number for any position player, but problematically anemic production for someone who primarily played first base in 2019.

Nevertheless, the rough finish doesn't take away from a mostly rock-solid career. Consistency was one of his biggest strengths, and he even made an All-Star appearance in 2010, when he hit .307 with 15 homers and scored a career-high 100 runs.

Looking to capitalize on their current window of contention, the Atlanta Braves have their sights set on Madison Bumgarner in free agency.

Per NBC Sports Bay Area's Alex Pavlovic, the Braves have made the four-time All-Star "a priority" and plan to "quickly communicate" their interest to him when free agency begins. 

Atlanta has been in on Bumgarner dating back to the July 31 trade deadline before the San Francisco Giants opted to keep their star left-hander to finish out the 2019 season. 

Pavlovic noted the Braves are the "clear favorite" to sign Bumgarner if he chooses to leave the Giants as a free agent. 

Despite winning the National League East in each of the past two seasons, the Braves have had problems piecing together a solid starting rotation. Their starters threw 873 innings with a 4.20 ERA in 2019. The Milwaukee Brewers were the only NL playoff team to rank worse in those categories.  

Bumgarner isn't as dominant as he was at his peak, but he posted a solid 3.90 ERA last season. He is also reliable after throwing 207.2 innings over 34 starts, both of which would have ranked first on the Braves staff. 

Congratulations, fans of any Major League Baseball team not named the Washington Nationals. As of 5 p.m. ET on Monday, with the passing of the MLB deadline for teams to extend qualifying offers for free-agent players, it's officially free agency. 

Per USA Today's Bob Nightengale, 10 players received qualifying offers from their teams on Monday:

Plenty of teams are on the record as wanting to make a big splash this offseason, but the top tier of big-name free agents isn't overly deep. That means there will be a lot of posturing, a lot of rumors and ultimately, only a handful of splashy signings. 

We'll break down some of the latest rumors concerning stars who recently contended for a World Series title, including the World Series MVP, Washington Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg, as well as ace Gerrit Cole, who pitched for the Houston Astros in the World Series. 

San Diego Padres Will Make a Run at Stephen Strasburg

Nationals fans clad in Strasburg jerseys have been reveling around the District of Columbia for days ever since he helped Washington triumph over the Houston Astros in the World Series this week. 

However, now that free agency is upon us, those fans may have to prepare to part ways with their World Series MVP. 

On Saturday, Strasburg opted out of his contract with the Nationals. While he has nine more days to accept or decline the league standard $17.8 million Washington offered, as The Washington Post's Jesse Dougherty put it, it's essentially a formality, and Strasburg will decline: 

Enter San Diego. 

The Padres are currently committed to shelling out just below $120 million in payroll next year, per Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune, but they have their sights set on Strasburg. "Multiple people in the organization indicated over the past few days that the team will be in position to make a run at Stephen Strasburg," Acee reported. 

Strasburg, who was owed $100 million over the rest of his four-year contract, is betting on himself. He had a stellar showing in 2019, having led the National League in innings (209) and wins (18).

Phillies Making Plans for Gerrit Cole 

The Padres aren't the only team fixated on a player who helped lead his club to the postseason this year. 

The Philadelphia Phillies are reportedly centering their offseason plans around landing Gerrit Cole, according to The Athletic's Matt Gelb:

"The Phillies have scouting meetings this week that will further shape their offseason plans. Cole will hit free agency as one of the most coveted pitchers in recent history. The Phillies will plot two scenarios for this winter—one with Cole and one without him."

Philadelphia already made a big splash this offseason when they announced Joe Girardi as their new manager. So why not continue to push the organization into the future by adding a talented arm to their rotation? 

Cole led the American League this season with a 2.50 ERA and led MLB with 326 strikeouts. He could soon be adding a Cy Young Award to his collection of honors, and he and agent Scott Boras know that now is the time to cash in big. 

The Phillies will have to meet them where they are to land the prize ace. As Gelb points out, the longest pitcher contract the Phillies have ever signed was Cole Hamels' six-year deal in 2012. 

Hyun-Jin Ryu Would Prefer to Stay in LA 

A third pitcher has been attracting interest from around the league as free agency opens, but unlike Strasburg or Cole, this one has a high likelihood of staying put. 

Per MLB.com's Mark Feinsand, left-handed pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu "will surely receive interest from other clubs after posting a league-leading 2.32 ERA in 182 2/3 innings last season, but the consensus around the league is that the left-hander wants to stay in Los Angeles and the Dodgers would like to bring him back."

It was a big year for Ryu, who in 2019 earned his first selection to an All-Star Game and is a finalist for the National League Cy Young Award. He finished his year with a 14–5 record and an ERA of 2.32, which led the MLB this season. 

The Dodgers extended the qualifying offer to Ryu last year, and he accepted, meaning they can't extend it again this year. 

Los Angeles is still looking to get over its postseason hump. Keeping Ryu in the mix is an important part of doing that in 2020 and beyond.