Some rumblings from around the NL East…
- The Mets were linked to Martin Maldonado in early November, though talks “haven’t materialized” as of yet between the team and Maldonado’s camp, the New York Post’s Mike Puma writes. Catcher remains a position of need for the Mets, though they’ve already seen one trade target (Yan Gomes) get dealt to a division rival in Washington, while their impending trade of some top prospects in the Robinson Cano/Edwin Diaz deal could mean New York doesn’t have the minor league depth to acquire J.T. Realmuto from the Marlins. Puma wonders if this means the Mets could circle back to Yasmani Grandal, another player that drew some early interest from the Amazins as the free agent market opened.
- In regards to Realmuto, the Mets and Phillies may not be realistic contenders for the catcher’s services, as the New York Post’s Joel Sherman hears from an official with the Nationals or Braves that “Miami is not trading him in the division.” It had previously been surmised that the Marlins’ huge asking price in a Realmuto trade was what turned D.C. and Atlanta to alternate catching solutions (i.e. Gomes, Kurt Suzuki, and Brian McCann), though it stands to reason that the Marlins could’ve wanted a particularly big premium in order to send Realmuto elsewhere in the NL West.
- Also from Sherman’s piece, he is “surprised how many executives and agents I speak to feel” Bryce Harper will re-sign with the Nationals and Manny Machado will sign with the Phillies. The Machado/Philadelphia connection is no surprise (45.8% of readers in the MLBTR Free Agent Prediction Contest chose Machado to the Phillies), though there has much less speculation about the possibility of Harper staying put. The general consensus has been that the Nats would go forward with an outfield mix of Juan Soto, Adam Eaton, and Victor Robles, and that they would recoup the draft pick compensation owed to them via the qualifying offer once Harper signed elsewhere. On the flip side, only a few teams would fit as potential candidates for Harper given his $400+ asking price, and the Nats do have a long history of handing out big money to Scott Boras clients.
- The Mets have longtime Yankees minor league pitching coach Scott Aldred on their list of bullpen coach candidates, according to Puma (Twitter link). Aldred is currently working a roving pitching coordinator in the Yankees’ farm system after spending the previous decade as a pitching coach at multiple minor league levels, including a lengthy stint at Triple-A.
If Harper isn’t going to Philly then he’s a Yankee.
The Nats offer was $300 million and we know much of it was deferred so they aren’t in this game.
The Nat’s not being in on Harper doesn’t produce a 400 million dollar check from the Yanks.
What are the Giants going to do to keep their fans interested? Their park has been sold out.
@ScottRolen I’m pretty sure Giants fans aren’t interested in their team dragging around the dead weight of the last half (or more) of that contract.
Where are the Giants mentioned?
hes 26… 10 years isnt going to result in too much dead weight
Correctomundo, my acquaintance, nevertheless methinks thou shalt consider Harper likely a Yankee. The Yankees have mucho dinero, and have the henceforth sought after reputation.
This
“This” no.
ScottR, your reasoning lacks, well, reason.
You realize that’s not going to be the Nats final offer….
Yankees took themselves out of the Harper race when they traded for Stanton last year. I agree he’s definitely not going back to Nationals. It’s always been the Cubs or Dodgers as the two most likely teams
There is no way Chicago can afford him, unless a miraculous trade of Heyward and Darvish come out of nowhere
Chicago can afford anyone at any time. Don’t let lazy national media guesses color your opinion otherwise.
No, they can’t and where does he play?
Burn0820, how is that? Are you privy to something the rest of the sports world doesn’t know?
Cubs get their own network in 2020 and will be flush with cash. However Theo isn’t stupid and won’t pay 400M for a guy who has had 1 1/2 big seasons. Harper’s numbers last year weren’t much different than Schwarber’s
false, It was likely a starting point and Boras will certainly circle around
Boras will circle around and Lerners will pay if they want him my guess is its a starting point Nats will be involved
That was their first offer. Stay tuned
Yeah im sure the execs you’ve spoken with know more than Sherman’s connections.
0’% chance he is a Yankee
Realmuto for Garrett Stubbs, Forrest Whitley, and Frambel Valdez. Who says no? I’m getting tired of the stubbornness of Jeter. I’m cheering for the fish, but damnit, Realmuto needs to be traded. Just accept the best offer teams are offering. I know he’s the best catcher in the game, and I know he’s controlled for 2 more season, which isn’t a lot… and I know he should bring back a haul. But just get it over with… I really don’t want to see the fish going into the season with Realmuto still on the team.
Whitley Stubbs Peres and James has more appeal to the Marlins.
Since Astros labeled Whitley untouchable – there’s your answer.
Jeter isn’t the GM nor is he the director of baseball ops for the Marlins. Does he really have so much say over this kind of decision? He owns, what, a 5% stake in the team and has a nebulous title. He’s a face for the fans, but I seriously doubt he’s the driver behind Realmuto’s trade value/talks.
Jeter has however told the brass to do what he thinks is best. That is ask for the stars and attain the moon. Good logic when you rebuild.
Derek Jeter is the CEO of the Marlins, and indeed makes decisions. Why do you post stuff like this all the time?
Astros don’t want to trade Whitley. It will be Kyle Tucker.
The marlins are definitely not in the NL West
Sherman: “looks like Mets tapped out budget-wise, (as usual) after recent Cano blockbuster, to sign Harper or Machado.”
“Machado signs with Phillies, Harper re-signs with the Nats, and Yankees get no one, of course.” Joel Sherman’s so biased against the Yankees, read his articles for laughs.
Mets aren’t tapped out. They actually have more money now after this trade for this year. They are in on every available player except for Machado, because of his attitude. Money isn’t an issue like it was with Alderson running the team
U make an excellent, and valid point point, but let’s not forget, the cheap ash Wilpons still own this team.
And yet, they just brought in Cano. I know it’s tough when facts don’t back up your long held opinions.
He does have a point, though. The Wilpons have a very long history of making a big splash but then not going the extra mile to support the rest of the teams needs and leaving open huge holes. Always hoping on “this” player to get healthy, or “that” player to regain his form from 2-3 years ago.
brought in Cano for 10 mill a year theyd be dumb not to
That was really Sandy’s modus operandi, wasn’t it?
Lol. You’ve got to be kidding!
Mark, 2nd bullet point at the bottom… those teams are in the NL East not the West
Depending if Santana is included in the deal going to Seattle it could make it less likely the Phillies get machado
If you think about it gardy and cc only signed one year deals, there’s no way gardy signs again after this year and cc said this is his last season. That opens up money options and spots on the roster. With all the free agents and contracts ending the yanks will get back at least 60+ mil. So I think it is possible the Yankees sign machado and Harper. They were over the 204 mil tax a couple seasons ago they were at 244 million… if the Yankees are thinking long term and dynasty status which we all know they are I think they will sign corbin, machado and Harper. They just had the Red Sox celebrate in their stadium twice last season and got their asses kicked in the playoffs. If they sign those three they will be back to the 244 million payroll but they are buying the YES network back and those two STAR names in our lineup will boost network ratings which means more $$. So there is a strong possibility they get all 3. Especially since the Phillies are strongly interested in segura
Thinking the Yankees are going to sign Machado, Harper, and Corbin is delusional. I am a diehard Yankee fan and I have to say things like this is what makes fans of other teams hate us. There is no way any team even the Yankees are going to tie up over $100 million a year in 3 players. (Stanton Harper and Machado) not to mention another $30m a year to Judge when he hits free agency. It’s not happening.
All 3???? Too many funny tasting brownies…
I’d say signing Corbin is 99%.(Family and himself are all Yankee fans)
Machado 50%(attitude hurts him)
Harper 5%(loaded with OFs and already have Stanton contract)
Doesn’t matter who his family roots for.
Completely worthless post.
If you think about it gardy and cc only signed one year deals, there’s no way gardy signs again after this year and cc said this is his last season. That opens up money options and spots on the roster. With all the free agents and contracts ending the yanks will get back at least 60+ mil. So I think it is possible the Yankees sign machado and Harper. They were over the 204 mil tax a couple seasons ago they were at 244 million… if the Yankees are thinking long term and dynasty status which we all know they are I think they will sign corbin, machado and Harper. They just had the Red Sox celebrate in their stadium twice last season and got their asses kicked in the playoffs. If they sign those three they will be back to the 244 million payroll but they are buying the YES network back and those two STAR names in our lineup will boost network ratings which means more $$.
I get the impression without the Boss around, Cashman won’t splurge a la 2008 offseason. He’s seen the negative impact giving out a lot of those long term deals could have on a team, even one with an almost limitless budget like the Yankees.
Something no one has talked about is a finding a way to craft an offer with the incentive to opt-out. Get 2-5 years of Harper or Machado and then let them opt out.
Machado and harper? Funny 80 mil for 2 players not worth it
@yankeenews24
Something has gotta give dawg.. Hope it’s Machado….
Could be none. Just be grateful who Yanks get as fans.
Braves back in the NL West!
I get not wanting to trade a player within your division when you think you might be competing for a playoff spot against that team while that player is under contract, but the Marlins are not going to be viable contenders in the NL East before Realmuto becomes a free agent. Maybe a slightly higher price tag since it would increase a division rivals chance at extending him, but they should be more focused on finding the right combination of players to help them in two, three, or four years from now, and focus less on sending him to a division rival for the next two years. With that said, the Marlins front office is infinitely better now than it was under previous ownership.
Yeah, apparently the Marlins just really don’t want to deal Realmuto..Asking the Nats for Soto and/or Robles, and then asking the Braves for Albies…C’Mon now, you know neither team is going there with those demands..
Either the Marlins are just being ridiculous because they’re inter-division rivals, and want no part of Realmuto in the NL East, or they just don’t want to trade him..
There was certainly a deal to be made with Atlanta, but for whatever reason the Marlins didn’t want him in the East..My question is why, who cares?? Certainly not Marlins fans…They don’t care about anything, nor are they suprised by anything..Marlins fans just want the best possible return, and by eliminating basically the Phillies, Braves, Nats, and Mets they’ve only made it harder on themselves..Now, there’s what, the Astros, White Sox, Blue Jays, and Padres that could legit compete with a Braves offer, and reportedly only one of those teams has strong interest in Realmuto…
Congrats Marlins, you’ve managed to somehow continue to screw up the only good bargaining chip you have…
They told the Mets Conforto or Nimmo. It’s an overpay for a division rival
Realmuto for Tucker, James, Valdez (or Stubbs) and Joe Perez. Make it happen Jeter!
the Nationals are one of 2 teams in the Luxury Tax position from 2018 isn’t that correct? and it’s the 2nd year 50% version too right? If that’s the case, and the Nationals were serious about signing Harper back, wouldn’t it be fiscally really irresponsible of Rizzo and the Lerners to not make every effort to get under the 2018 Luxury Tax # if they were gonna make a legitimate effort to sign Bryce? I mean, i understand that there will be later years in the contract where they could be under the LTax. but year 1 and probably a few after that they are gonna likely be paying Luxury Tax at a high rate. losing draft picks, international monies and be hamstrung as far as getting additional talent.
sure, they let Murphy etc go at the end of the season in what seemed to be salary dump. but too little too late if it was to get under the LTax. and that’s on? Rizzo and or the Lerners.
for that reason, i think they made Bryce a token offer. one they knew he would refuse and would set the table for others to start at. that way Bryce can save face. the Nationals won’t raise holy hell from their fans that wanted to at least try to keep Bryce. and they can move on with Eaton, Soto and Robles in the outfield. pay Rendon etc and go get that stud top 3 of the rotation pitcher maybe Corbin LHP to upgrade and replace Gio Gonzalez.
U make an excellent, and valid point point, but let’s not forget, the cheap ash Wilpons still own this team.
Astros have deemed Whitley and Tucker off limits but I can see them moving any combo of Garrett Stubbs, Rogelio Armenteros, JB Bukauskas, Framber Valdez, Cionel Perez
Jeez kind of obvious. Santana is traded , Hoskins goes back to first and Harper is signed
How is that obvious?
This entire season I’ve been thinking about Harper going back to the Nats. But once the prediction contest came, I changed my mind.
May be a little pissed at myself.
Harper will probably sign with the Dodgers. The Dodgers would probably want to get rid of Puig to make room for Harper in the outfield and on the payroll. Maybe the Nats could help them by trading the pick they are getting for Harper signing elsewhere for Puig!
That might be good for both teams.
come on man!
If the Phillies complete the trade for Segura, it makes it less likely they are in on Machado, as Machado has been pretty clear that he wants to play shortstop. I’m also not sure Machado is a good fit in Philadelphia personality wise. He’ll get eaten alive if he doesn’t hustle
I really don’t think he’s going to say no to $300-400mil if someone asks him to play 3rd again. If the highest offer is from a team who wants him to play 3rd, I think it’s safe to assume he’d consider moving back to the hot corner.
Agree about the fans though. He could potentially be eaten alive for not acting right
As far as a return to the Nats goes, one should remember that we are near the end of the dispute between MASN and the Nationals over rights fees. Regardless of the outcome (and it looks good for the Nats) there will be an infusion of Cash in the Nationals Coffers that decrease the need for deferred money. While the Nats need to avoid the luxury tax this season they have already limited the outlay to Catcher and second base, and the OF payroll (w/o Harper is rather low.
The other side of that picture is Rizzo is all in on Corbin, Rendon is in negotiations for an extension and Harper…. well you know.
look at the writing on the wall…teams like atl and Phil’s made trades for a reason.
everyone predicted 500+ for these players now down to 300+.
they will sit for the best offer however last season proved that teams are lowering FA spending….this season trades prove that…if Machado or Hypar wait longer they will get thw jd Martinez contract.
dont believe??? well will see
Don’t be surprised if Conforto or Nimmo get moved for relievers and prospects and the Mets sign Harper. You heard it hear first kids.
(PS, Elvis is alive and a short order cook in Tacoma Washington)
Yankees are the richest team in baseball with over 4 billion into the franchise. You don’t get to many chances on adding two great all stars and impact players such as Harper and Machado. Sign them both sign Otto to cover for Roberson and Murphy trade for Kluber. Forget about Sanchez trade and stay far away from Corbin. Corbin had one good year in the NL and he’s no ace so he’s not worth 7 years 160 mil. The Yankees will make more money adding these top players because there taking over Yes network so it will generate more money. Starting pitchers 2019 Kluber Sevy Paxton Tanka CC. Line Up. Hicks Judge Harper Machado Stanton Didi/Murphy when back Sanchez Voit/Murphy Torres. Andujar Bird Frazier Florial Abreu all get dealt in trades. Who knows Bumgarner might even get added in trade now or July deadline. Yankee need to go big or keep going home watching the World Series on tv. Ten years is enough time to run it with this team. We can get 1-5 World Series in the next decade with all these locked in players bonus there all in there young to mid 20’s. Minus Kluber and Paxton. We loss dead weight next year dumping CC and Gardy. GO ALL IN CASHMAN TELL OWNERS TO STOP TRYING TO SAVE PENNIES WITH THIS LUXURY TAX. GO ALL IN Red Sox had over 240mil budget 2018 which equaled World Series. GO YANKEES 2019 can be ours Bronx Bombers Baby.
rofl
For someone who just added about $150 million to next year’s payroll (including two contracts that’ll be among the largest ever), you’re uncharacteristically stingy when it comes to Corbin.
I will take Stanton over Harper every single day. Better Stats, better teammate, better attitude.
How do you know Stanton is a better teammate? Are you making that statement because of your dislike of Harper? For all you know Taunton is a dirtbag.
*Stanton*
Whoa! I’m not a fan of Harper but the only one I’ve ever heard of having a problem with him is Pappelbon. And you saw how that ended up. The kid plays hard for his team. Exactly what you want from a star.
I can’t vouch for his reputation as a teammate, but it’s a stretch to claim that Harper is known for playing hard.
There have been a few articles about why his defensive metrics were so terrible this year. When you go back and watch his plays, a lack of effort (not hustling for balls, letting catchable balls drop in front of him, not diving, etc.) was identified as the main cause.
And he’s also come under scrutiny several times for his lack of hustle on ground balls.
I think there’s a typo. The Marlins aren’t in the NL West
Harper’s WAR was below 2.0 in three of the last five seasons. He isn’t even worth the 10yr $300M the Nats already offered. I’m a huge Nats fan. Watch every game. He’s just not consistent enough to justify that kind of money. The Lerners have made it clear that they don’t want to pay the luxury tax again. Meanwhile, Rizzo still needs to add at least one SP (a lefty in particular), maybe two (since he traded Rodriguez in the Gomes deal). Eaton, Robles and Soto is still a very good OF. Forget Harper!!!
I know Rodriguez is young, but considering he posted a 6.75 ERA, 1.655 WHIP in his eight starts last year, it shouldn’t be too hard to find a replacement – even if it’s just another depth guy within the farm or a guy signed on a minor league contract.
I don’t necessarily disagree, but Rodriguez’s overall numbers (5.71ERA and 1.54 WHIP) were ok. More importantly, you could see improvement toward the end of the year. He has good stuff, and could develope into a viable SP.
I don’t think clubs are very interested in Harper or Machado, I know I’m not could care less, both are loafers and self proclaimed superstars, I don’t buy what their selling
Lets add up Hosmer’s past 3 season WAR totals and do the same for Harper. Hmmmmm.
He had one great season, the league made adjustments and now…the numbers speak for themselves.
Availability is a great ability.
Mets definitely need a catcher who can hit or they will not contend [most likely] in 2019.
Maldonado cannot hit.
Grandal can.
On Harper…..$400 million for a guy who had 100 RBI once, 40 HR once and a propensity to bat in the .240s?? No Thanks.
1) Harper has had three 100 RBI seasons
2) It’s hard to get RBI’s when pitchers don’t pitch to you with men in scoring position (Harper had great splits with RISP last season, but was walked at an extremely high rate)
3) He’s hit in the .240’s twice in seven years, and is a career .279 hitter (with a career .388 OBP)
4) Ask the Orioles if it’s a good idea to sign a guy based primarily on his home run totals
Regardless of who signs him they will regret paying for years 6 through 10. Unless those pockets are deep it will negatively impact their payroll structure with little production coming from Harper.
For those of u living under a rock and don’t c the writing on the wall. Harper is going to the biggest market possible. LA, NY, Philly, Chicago.
Let’s also not forget everyone thought JD Martinez wouldn’t b around for the Sox. And they waited him out his price tag came down a bit and they got him even tho they had a full OF. I won’t b shocked if Harper takes alittle less then everyone expects and it’s the Cubs, Yanks, or Dodgers. I think the Phillies will b all in on Machado even after the Segora trade.
Nats lineup without Harper is still pretty good:
Eaton (L) – RF
Turner (R) – SS
Soto (L) – LF
Rendon (R) – 3B
Zimmerman (R) – 1B
Kendrick (R) – 2B
Gomes (R) – C
Robles (R) – CF
Or something like that.
Starting Piching is where Rizzo needs to make some moves.