The Yankees never made a formal offer to the Indians in talks regarding Francisco Lindor, writes Buster Olney of ESPN. The two teams kicked around frameworks involving Lindor before Cleveland dealt him and right-hander Carlos Carrasco to the Mets, but the Yankees evidently never put an official proposal on the table. It seems the Yankees were deterred by Lindor’s lofty projected arbitration salary for 2021, which eventually landed at $22.3MM. New York’s main focus all winter has been agreeing to a long-term deal with DJ LeMahieu, which the team finally pulled off this week.
More out of the East divisions:
- The Mets and Blue Jays have been the two teams most closely connected to George Springer this winter. Jon Morosi of MLB.com feels the Mets have the geographical upper hand, noting that the Connecticut native and former UConn star would prefer to play close to home. (Springer’s home town of New Britain is approximately a two-hour drive from Queens, compared to seven-plus hours to Toronto). Of course, geographical ties of this sort are often discussed as potential tiebreakers for prominent free agents but are rarely enough to overcome significant discrepancies in teams’ respective contract proposals. Indeed, Morosi acknowledges the possibility the Mets eventually turn their attention elsewhere, particularly if they manage to sign reliever Brad Hand.
- More from Olney, who notes that the Braves “appear highly unlikely” to re-sign outfielder Marcell Ozuna. The 30-year-old slugger had an incredible season in Atlanta after signing a one-year deal last offseason. Ozuna is now in line for a much bigger multi-year accord this winter. That doesn’t fit the general approach of Braves’ GM Alex Anthopolous, who has tended to shy away from longer-term deals since taking over baseball operations. Just last winter, the Braves watched Josh Donaldson, who had starred on a similar pillow contract in 2019, walk for a four-year deal with the Twins. MLBTR projects a $72MM accord over that same length for Ozuna.
because its news whether or not the Yankees make an offer to someone…smh Buster that’s not news.
Idk, I thought it was pretty interesting
It’s only interesting if you’re a Yankees fan. Otherwise, it’s just a continuation of the eastern team (Yankees, Red Sox, Mets, Phillies, Nats, Orioles) biased which has dominated this site forever. Lindor is known as Mr. Smiles. I prefer Mr. Clutch. That he isn’t.
I think you’ve got a point. Buster, next article, I want to read all about the Angels’ offseason moves!
BTW, Indians have been discussed this offseason just as much as any team on here….. and way more so than other teams.
I have an idea! For every article written in a big market team, the must be an equitable small market team article. Otherwise, the writer gets penalized and has to write extra on the small market teams so they get even more coverage than big market teams!!! Kind of like a readers’ CBT, right?!
Orioles dominated here? Other than the Machado saga, I must have missed the rest of the “domination”. As for the other listed teams, they all play in markets that are ranked #1, #2, #3, #4 and #9 in market size. Cleveland is #21 so yeah the bigger the market size, the more hits on this site, the more content on the larger market teams.
It is the East Coast Trade Rumors isn’t it. I agree that is all they write about. Oh wait news flash Cashman has added fries to his lunch order.
Kind of funny…years ago people accused it of being a Cubs bias because Tim was in Chicago.
Its ok Indianfan, we know you’re hurting. We will take Mr. Smiles everyday. Enjoy Ahmed when he can’t reach a ground ball or when he throws the ball away. Hope you have a GG first basemen, because you’re going to need it. Again, we love Mr. Smiles and he will be clutch for us.
Well, we’ll see about that… because we’ve got him now, you don’t. 🙂
I will be rooting for the Mets players on Cleveland. I think you’ll find SS Andres Gimenez to be Gold Glove level. His bat needs to improve, but I think that potential is there.
He was referred to by a Mets announcer as the player with the highest baseball IQ on the team, though he was only up from MiLB for, I guess, a couple months or so.
His defense improved noticeably. He probably won’t be the regular shortstop though. That would probably be Andres Gimenez, who is an excellent defensive player.
Yankees are a franchise that’s stuck in poverty, how do you miss manage a roster to the point where you can’t sign anyone and are saddled with 3 albatross contracts?
3 albatross contracts, 174 million payroll,, and they’re stuck in poverty? I don’t think you know what poverty means.
How do you mismanage a roster like the Yankees? Simple. You spend too much on big names, which is the opposite of poverty.
Sounds like the Angels model: need pitchers but sign hitters then grossly overpay for them (Pujols, Upton, Rendon, Hamilton, etc.)
Agreed, poverty is a family of 17 in a third-world nation eating sand for dinner and drinking the same dirty water that they’ve washed and bathed in for the past six months.
Or a family of five where both parents work for minimum wage.
They just signed DJ to a massive contract. Lol. Sorry they can’t sign the entire league.
Tatsumaki, be honest, is your first name…… Masahiro? I get the alliteration……
I’m glad the Yankees still trying to buy teams and championships. When they finally decide to switch to the A’s/Indians/Rays model AND have the money to backfill holes it will stupid how good those teams will be.
Debubba, it’s hard for the Yankees to do that since their model relies on funding from teams like the Yankees and higher selections because of their classification.
You mean like the Dodgers? I know what you mean. Im really hoping this is what Cohen/Sandy/Porter/Scott are attempting with the Mets
Please explain more. Higher selections because of their classification?
You conveniently skipped the rest of what I said – You know, the whole baseball welfare program (CBT) and their draft pick selections? The Yankees and Dodgers and soon the Mets (maybe) bankroll teams like the Rays; and you have the audacity to preach that the Yankees should operate their budget and personnel like them? You misunderstand economics and business at a level that is too challenging to overcome in this conversation.
And, Cohen’s Wallet, I might add that the Dodgers have an incredibly high payroll as well. Yankees have one of the top farm systems also and It’s not like the Dodgers payroll is even remotely close with the Rays there, fella. Good cherry-picking though. They won one time since ‘88.
Whoa Bessie! Settle down. I was not trying to start an argument, just ask a question to gain more clarity.
That could be the Mets going forward. I sure hope so. 🙂
I’m a Mets fan, but the Yankees are not stuck on poverty. They have a solid team and it seems they are always in the playoffs. With that said, they do have some contracts that are hampering them, but they are known to always come out on top or have you been under a rock these last 3 decades.
That’s a weird way to say, “I read a portion of this article, didn’t like it, so now I’ll complain.”
“That’s not news” is what Buster’s business card reads.
I found it interesting
Buster is a shill for the Yankees. Almost as bad as Jon Heyman (although Heyman is also a shill for Boras).
You just hate Buster because he knows how to type complete sentences like an adult.
Hey man, change your screen name. It’s a new Mets world out there. Five years from now the Dodgers will be referred to as The Mets West ha-ha.
Well, I thought that was funny. There’s some truth to that though. 🙂
Lord Braves…. Cant bank that these 1 year deals will continue to prove amazing with the bats. It’s just not a sustainable model. Didn’t work on the pitching end last year… in fact, bit us bad. Need to be willing to sign a guy or two that is proven and can provide support to Freddie for more than one year. I’m fine with it not being Ozuna especially if there is no DH, but show us some life, please!
It might help if there was clear direction for the DH for NL. Braves have Waters and Pache waiting in the wings.
DH would provide more chances for them to sign him.
Seriously though, what is the basis for Braves “appear highly unlikely” — because he’s still unsigned — along with everyone else (Ozuna, Cruz, Brantley, etc.) where DH is a possibility?
The Braves are smart to take chances on the one year pillow contracts and then letting the players walk- sure, they will inevitably be burned at times, but better to be burned on a one year failure than to get tied to an over priced multi-year deal.
Particularly since they don’t have a gaping hole that has to be filled- they need a useful bat. Odds are, there will be at least one of those available a month from now.
I’d define needing a #3 or #4 type hitter as a gaping hole.
I’m not saying AA has done a poor job, but he HAS to get over his fear of pulling the trigger on the big deal. This isn’t Toronto all over again. Even LA, where he previously worked, pulled the trigger on Betts- and Betts is the reason the Braves went home.
We are talking about a team that was one run away from being the highest scoring in all of baseball last year. Yes, Ozuna was obviously a part of that, but he was hardly the only one.
There were a lot of reasons Atlanta went home like base running worst I ever seen. They played poor defense in playoffs threw to the wrong bases and their bullpen was not very good in key places. The starting pitcher is not very good and will be just as bad in 2021 after adding bad pitchers!
Ozuna’s bat is definitely a gaping hole. He made that lineup go last year.
Unfortunately no one can guarantee that Ozuna can even come close to the production he had last season. While I will agree that Atlanta needs a productive right handed bat to replace Ozuna’s output from 2020, I absolutely cannot believe that Ozuna himself is very likely to provide it. Definitely a big risk of a bad contract.
And that gaping hole will still be gaping if AA settles for Markakis, Camargo, or another similar bat and Freddie will suffer because of it too.
After Ozuna’s baserunning blunder in the playoff and all his strikeout, he was one of the reasons Atlanta lost. Atlanta was not a very good team in the playoff against the Dodgers.
The Braves do have a gaping hole…it is the bat that protects Freeman. That is a huge hole. I personally feel they should bring Ozuna back, but I was also in the group of people that wanted Donaldson back as well. So AA made the right decision last year. I put my trust in him to once again make the better choice. I still think signing Ozuna and Rosario are the right moves to make. Ozuna is the bat that protects Freeman and Rosario is the bat that really lengthens that lineup. Hopefully the DH is also back and you have room to play Pache as well.
So far these 1 year contracts have worked out. Even the Hamels deal to an extent. He was proven and then had an injury riddled year…Thankfully it was for only 1 season and not 3 or 4. That is where is worked out. Not being locked into a long term contract with someone that is unable to take the mound every 5th day.
Yeah ask the Orioles
Shocked the Braves wouldn’t resign ozuna, he was so important to their lineup. Losing him making them much worse, with padres and Mets slightly getting the edge.
He had a career year he’s unlikely to come close to duplicating and his glove is awful
Freeman had his best year too and I think they directly correlate
Studies show that who hits ahead of or behind you doesn’t matter. So the whole lineup protection thing is a myth. Nevertheless, Freeman is a consistently great hitter, Ozuna had an outlier of a half season he’s unlikely to repeat.
Hmm. I haven’t seen these studies. All I know is freeman and ozuna both had their highest ops + in last years shortened season. Freeman having regression is just as likely as ozuna. Without ozunas bat that lineup is significantly worse. He was their second best hitter last year and freeman was the MVP of the league.
Ozuna is a good hitter but last season was an outlier. If Freeman regresses to his norm he’s still an all star. If Ozuna does the same, factoring his terrible fielding, he may not be worth it. My point is, Atlanta would be wise to look elsewhere. Sign Ozuna and they’re likely to get stuck with a good but not great hitter who kills them in the field.
@Cosmo2
So what you are saying is Freddie Freeman is up behind him is Inciarte and you are telling me there is no difference than if there was Ozuna behind him? The pitches he sees will be exactly the same?
You are pitching very carefully to Freeman and go after Inciarte but if Ozuna who was doing amazing last year is behind him i would attack Freeman more and risk the one run than pitch around Freeman and risk 2 runs with Ozuna against a guy that couldnt hit himself out of a wet paperbag with no power in Inciarte
All I know is replacing ozunas bat this offseason is extremely important. He had as much offensive value as Mike trout last year. We can argue wether or not that helped freeman but he was really good.
I’m saying that studies show that, although it seems like it would matter, it actually doesn’t.
You mean he had a career 2 months, and he didn’t exactly rake in the postseason.
Do you have a link to these studies Cosmo2? I would like to read up on it.
I’m not up for peer review here and I’m not saying anyone else is wrong. Bill James’ website has referenced these studies several times. No, I don’t have a link. Take my word for it or don’t. But the notion that hitters protect each other in the lineup is just that, a notion. It’s effects have certainly never been proven, unless you happen to have THOSE studies on hand.
I don’t. I am looking for solid evidence either way. That is why I asked. I was not taking a shot.
@Cosmo2: Touchy.
Not sure if this is what he’s talking about, but it’s a discussion on the topic.
beyondtheboxscore.com/2015/5/19/8614817/lineup-pro…
TY 1984! Looks like they actually did a study. They showed lineup protection both does and doesn’t exist. Kinda hard to take anything definitive from it. I’m also not sure if they just looked at Cabrera and Fielder or if they looked at all of baseball.
Damn! Now I have to consider whether or not lineup protection exists. Not saying it doesn’t, I just have to consider the possibility. Thx Cosmo2! (Sarcasm)
Lineup protection is a fantastic study.
Discussions around protection in the form of a basestealing threat in front of a hitter, which in theory distracts the pitcher enough, and forces less offspeed so a strong fastball hitter can take advantage seem inconclusive.
You’ll find similar cases for and against protection existing from behind in the order as well.
Tough to dispute the benefits of lengthening the lineup though.
Most studies seem to involve one changing piece, like Cabrera after Fielder left for example. Not factoring health, or some real world issues that these guys were dealing with is a rather large flaw to me.
What about assembling a modern day Murderer’s Row? The teams that make it tough for a starter to make it a 3rd time through the lineup tend to wear down bullpens and ultimately win divisions. Having 4 strong bats is tough, 5 is torture, 6 is just impossible for most starters. 2018 Red Sox had that gauntlet working perfect. Connect 3 studs if the starting pitching is strong enough- Turner/Soto/Rendon… A lot of teams heart of order is 2 all star level players, when it starts becoming 3 MVP candidates all in a row, that is definitely a case of lineup protection existing.
Even in rec level ball, it is noticeable when an opponent has a few strong bats compared to a team with 5-6 strong bats. At MLB level it must be much more magnified. Adding on base threats and tough outs to the lineup improves an offense. Some stat will prove me wrong, but I can flip many stats and examples in counter so if anyone wants some fun, I’m always game for a baseball debate.
Hudson: sorry, I get unnecessarily defensive sometimes
If the Blue Jays had any guts, they’d pull a Padres and sign Bauer AND Springer. Unfortunately, Rogers would never allow it. This is why you never want your team to be owned by a company.
Can’t agree more!
Nats, Braves, DBacks, Tigers and Astros are all owned by corporations not just the Jays
I’d argue Braves ownership is by far the worst amongst that group…all of those have spent big money and won championships in recent years, except the Tigers but they still have some recent WS appearances
The inactivity on Atlanta’s part isn’t an ownership issue, it’s a GM’s philosophy.
Except for a Wild Card loss in 2017, the Diamondbacks haven’t been to the playoffs since 2011. The Tigers haven’t been since 2014. The Braves have been the last three years, five of the last ten, eleven of the last twenty, and all that happened AFTER their tremendous success in the 1990’s. The Braves aren’t ever going to spend like the Yankees and the Dodgers. They just aren’t. For what they can spend, they’re an amazingly competitive team. Seems to me they ought to get more love than they do rather than getting ranked at the bottom of a list of teams they’ve outperformed lately. Just sayin’.
The Astros aren’t owned by a corporation….
I believe the Blue jays have a problem signing free agents do to they don’t even know where their home game will be played. Also are their tax reasons free agents don’t want o play in Toronto.
The tax difference between New York and Canada are next to nothing, when you add up the state, Federal and City taxes for athletes in New York and in Canada the Athlete is taxed on the games played in Canada and only on a Federal and Provincial level there is not City tax like the 8.3 % levied by the City of New York
Misinformation from jaysfansince1977. There is no 8.3% income tax bracket in NYC on top of the State income tax. The highest tax brackets also kick in far sooner in Canada than they do in the US, New York State has a top bracket of 8.82% on incomes over $1,000,000 USD. Ontario is 13.16% for incomes over 220k CAD, or about 160k USD. Those people pay about half their income in tax starting at 160K USD. That would provoke a revolt in the US.
Publicly-traded companies, like pension plans, have a fiduciary duty to their shareholders. Complaining that it’s a matter of ‘guts’ is the most 14-year old thing there is. :The reason the Blue Jays aren’t owned by billionaires like teams in the US is,
a) there aren’t many billionaires in Canada because of the lack of successful businesses and the tax structure, and;
b) the few billiionaires there are want nothing to do with baseball. See the Bronfmans who bailed on the Expos.
Yes i was mistaken the the 8.3 % i quoted was the state tax rate but athletes who play in the Big Apple are also subject to an additional 3.648% tax that’s leveled by New York City itself on all incomes above $65,000. While some women who play on the WNBA’s New York Liberty (who are moving from New Jersey to Madison Square Garden for the 2014 season) could pay a city tax rate of as little as 3.35% if they earn the league minimum, all male professional athletes in the major sports leagues pay a combined state and city tax rate of 12.468%. This affects the New York Yankees and Mets of MLB, the New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets of the NBA, and the New York Rangers of the NHL Canadian federal tax rates for athletes makeing opver 300 thou is 37 % menwhile the Federal tax rate in the US for the same incom bracket is 33 %
There are 53 billionaires in Canada a bit more than a few
@Le Grande Orangerie. There is an additional income tax imposed on NYC residents. It caps out at around 3.8% for top earners. The top federal marginal tax rate is 37%, and the top NY State marginal tax rate is around 8.8%, and with multi-million dollar incomes, the effective tax rates approach those top marginal rates.
Add in another couple percent for FICA (Social Security/Medicare), and NYC residents with several million in income do have about a 50% tax rate (36+2+8+3). Tax deductions reducing their taxable wage base will reduce their ultimate tax burden, but for high earners like professional baseball players, I don’t think there is a big difference in tax burden for residents of Toronto compared to residents of NYC.
@jaysfansince1977 Note that the NYC income tax is a resident tax that generally does not apply to people who work in NYC but reside outside of the City.
I think listing drive time for Springer is hilarious. Bet his next contract will allow him to afford a plane ticket.
One good idea for this website would be to add a subscriber feature where you can ‘block’ certain accounts.. I’d prefer to see comments from people who are either more mature, or a bit farther up the IQ scale than those who think the problems Canada faces with free agents is because of a telecom’s ‘guts’.
Blocking because you lack tolerance or is IQ something you throw around without owning much of it?
10 years ago the site had almost a Cheers like repoir among the regulars. Comments were moderated well. The format changed and I believe they turned the comment section loose to get more eyes in front of the ads…sunk it. I usually come check in every once in awhile, but this is the most I’ve commented in years. It’s a scrolling matter…lots of scrolling to find decent baseball conversation. I’d love to have that.
MLB should never sell teams to corporations or media companies. The latter removes a significant revenue source.
Who says Bauer or Springer wants to go there. A contract needs two sides for it to be consummated.
Bauer and Springer might not want to go to Toronto. For 20 years Rogers hasn’t shown the consistent commitment to winning. They’ve tried to win on the cheap and failed. At least the current regime has helped improve the scouting and development. Jays used to be the model prior to Ricciardi.
One area we are overlooking: agents.
Wouldn’t be surprised if agents tell their clients not to trust Toronto. Jays tend to perform soft rebuilds quite often, so why would a free agent want to sign for big money if the franchise isn’t willing to stay committed to the cause? I believe that is a big hurdle for Atkins and company, letting agents know that “we really are committed to winning now. No, seriously!”
As long as the money is there it doesn’t matter about location or agents. Pay them more and they will come.
Yes. However, if agents aren’t sold on the Jays’ commitment then they aren’t selling their client on the idea of signing with Toronto. What has Rogers shown to make free agents want to come to Toronto? What have they shown agents to say to their clients Toronto is second to none?
I know Beeston and Gillick used to wine and dine the free agents and their families….
JP was great at the wooing game too.
After a World Series in 92, did Gillick land Bonds or Maddux?
He was still all about that trade for another team’s secret treasure and develop talent in house for the most part.
Did he wine and dine David Cone after giving up his own secret treasure to get him? Or did the Jays lose out during the one period in most people’s lifetime when the Yankees couldn’t attract free agents.
Did he have the Rays stealing all these gems before he could get to it?
Keep hoarding pitchers. But do it more aggressively. That’s the hope. Some Gillick style steals would be sweet.
Expecting perfection is not fair to anybody. Still going to be finding fault when they’re winning again.
After all the talk about Blue Jays being in on all free agents, have they signed any difference-makers this off season?
Rhetorical question?
In math, the word difference is the result of subtracting one number from another.
Major difference makers added so far this offseason!
Braves without Ozuna will struggle to catch up to the Mets.
Rotfl. Every year it’s the same thing. Every year the Braves out pace the Mets and finish higher in the standings.
Do something first, then boast.
That’s the Braves fans biggest argument. That’s how you know they can’t even say their team is better. The last 3 years the Mets did worse but they haven’t had a team like this one.
Dude, what? The Braves fans biggest argument is their actual record of success and you write that as if it’s a flaw? Take the advice and wait for the actual success of your team to start boasting.
Braves’ biggest problem is poor base running and poor outfield play.
(sigh) watch the mets become 4th and if they make the playoffs just wait for a Connor Gillispie moment. Then they will be a joke again lol
Just getting better players doesn’t mean you Mets will win.
How does the rest of the NL East smell from behind, MetsFan22?
Braves are still better than Mets, but if the low level 2 pitchers they signed don’t work out then Mets may overtake Braves. Not a Met or Braves fan.
I’m a Mets’ fan. Braves are still better on paper (5 quality SPs to Mets 3)..
However, that might change in the next few weeks if the Mets can sign Springer and/or Hand and another decent SP..
Larry48, in what world is Morton a low level signing?
Maybe if this were 2014…
Morton was not very good in the 2020 regular season or in the playoffs. Morton is 37 years old and doesn’t throw as hard and the location was not very good, there was a reason Tampa Bay let him go.
Remember in 2018 when the Mets started out 11-1 and the NL East basically spotted them a 4 game lead then they went 18 games under .500 the rest of the way and finished in 4th place?
Yeah good times…
Remember in 1996 when the Braves got a two game lead in the World Series and then MLB shrunk their pitchers’ strike zone to the size of a postage stamp?
Not good times.
LOL, MLB did that to just the Braves.
Haha, they stopped giving 3 inches off the plate and the Braves felt squeezed
Currently, no, the Mets aren’t better than the Braves. They closed the gap with Lindor. If the Mets add Springer and the Braves lose Ozuna, then the Mets may overtake them. I’d put the Mets ahead on paper, if that came to pass.
Right now, however, no. The Mets will be better, but they’re not good enough.
The Braves are not better on paper.
Why do the braves need to “catch up” with anybody? The braves are the best in the division until proven otherwise. The rest of the east is trying to catch up this off-season.
Interesting because the “experts” on MLB and CBS seem to think the Mets have passed the Braves on paper or its even… I’m a met fan and I’ll believe it when I see it, though the moves do address some important holes (#2 sp, Catcher, RP, improved D)… if they actually get Springer, then I’d be very optimistic bc the offense and D will improve even that much more
Mets22, you’re the most delusional poster on here
After reading the back and forth, I looked into it as well. Was kinda surprised to see how projections look for the NL East. I don’t root for any of those teams, so I have no personal investment in it, but was surprised to see how close it is between the Braves/Mets/Nats.
Do we need to be better on paper? We always end up better in the standings regardless lol
So you’re fully confident Stroman will post a good year, and you completely trust your 4th and 5th starters? You believe Nimmo is the true CF you need?
Mets will be better at shortstop, but they weren’t bad at short. Mets defense at 1B, outfield, and catcher sucked. Not that they made an error it the normal ball that good teams get to Mets don’t. They will change that over the next 3-4 years but not at all position in 2021,
I think if the Mets sign even Tanaka then they might be in the conversation, but nobody will know until the games are played.
@MetsFan22: as a Mets fan, please stop talking. I don’t care about ‘on paper’ and neither do the Braves. The Mets are and will be chasing the Braves until they ain’t, and not a day sooner. We need to actually win something before talking trash. Even the awful Marlins finished ahead of the Mets last year.
As a Mets fan myself, I could care less what you want me to say. Just don’t hop on the bandwagon when we are leading the division.
If.
Mets fan saying crap again. Im a Nats fan and at the beginning of 2019 you guys were better on paper but no its about the heart of a team and a feel like mets dont have that right now. Idc if Mets are better because imma bring up 2019. Mets fans are so cocky.
In 2019 the Mets were not better on paper than the braves…
I know im saying the Mets were better on paper and most of the other playoff teams than Nats yet they still won. So it’s not about on paper its the heart. Lindor should bring a boost but I cant see Mets making a big run tbh.
*Couldn’t care less. “Could care less” implies that you care at least to some extent.
I thought I wrote that. You should know what I meant.
Jays need to shake things up: Make a deal with Cinci for a Castillo/Moustakis package, then sign Springer when he sees you’re serious!
Like your idea but would prefer Suerez to Moustakis and might as well sign Bauer too
Suarez might be better than Moustakas at this point, but it would cost less prospect capital to get a Castillo/Moustakas package rather than a Castillo/Suarez package.
If Jays get Suarez and Castillo the prospect cost should not matter, worrying about prospect cost does not show a team is serious!
If Jays want Geno to that gonna cost an extra prospect because he has a great contract. The reds arent giving him up for the same as Moose, but the bluejays should jump on it if its one more prospect
There is zero reason for the Reds to move Castillo and Suarez in the same deal. They would get significantly more in return trading them to 2 different teams. Both would bring back multiple top 100 prospects. It’s a waste of time to even suggest something so ridiculous.
Most trade suggestions by fans on this site are fantasy and will never happen. They are not worth reading.
I can’t imagine the prospects that would take. I have no idea why the Reds have reportedly been considering moving Castillo.
The Reds are not trading Castillo he is under team control and doesn’t cost that much. Some sportswriter or blogger made it up and Reds keep saying that don’t want to trade him.
I like Ozuna to the White Sox, but not on a 4 year deal.
Don’t see any team giving Ozuna 17 million as primary DH in 2021.
Its really the length of any deal thats more of the problem. If you get production similar to what he did last year, then $17M per year is fine.
I’m not really convinced he’s going to produce like that from here on out though. What I would be worried about is him on a 4 year deal and then a year or two from now if he stops hitting like that and you end up with a league average DH or basically a pinch hitter making 17M with no defensive value.
His babip was ~70 points higher than his career average and ~40 points higher than his previous career best, I wouldn’t expect him to reproduce last season going forward, either. He was 3rd in MLB in wRC+, he had a really good 2020.
He’s 5th in MLB in hard hit % last three seasons… tends to lead to a higher BABIP… he’ll produce wherever he goes… wish he could field bc I’d love him on the Mets
I agree that he’s going to produce, its just a matter of if its elite production or slightly above average production.
If you look at his years with the Cardinals he had wRC+ of 107 and 109, then last year with the Braves its dramatically increased to 179. He had a .800 OPS in 2019, which is good but then a 1.067 OPS in 2020 which is amazing. If you get the 2018-2019 version of Ozuna, he’s still like a very solid 2 to 3 WAR player, but the 2020 Ozuna was like on pace for a 6+ WAR all-star/superstar type output in a full season.
Personally 4+ years scares me with him because I think you’re more likely to get that 2018-2019 type production over the course of the deal and at like $15-20M a year thats going to be a lot of money for that.
309/257/391 babip the last 3 years. So while your point is generally true, it doesn’t apply here. It’s really not that hard to look things up.
Ozuna played in Atlanta high altitude which helps batter not like Colorada but it’s not like sea level parks.
Can’t believe the Indians would keep Plesac who everyone got mad at for going out with Clevinger cause covid and trade Carrasco. What a trash organization! /s
Cheaper contract with more control at a much younger age. What exactly is bad about holding on to that? Maybe other teams don’t want him? The point is you don’t know but the organization is not trash for holding on to a promising young player regardless if he’s an idiot or not.
/s = sarcasm.
I wish Ozuna would come back to the Cardinals
Braves are riding their time for the one moment where the Mets think they have springer in their grips, AA will come out of the shadows and snag up springer from them! Don’t need to worry about a DH with him and an OF with Him, Acuna, and Pache for years is just so darn intimidating! Oh and watch Lindor become brittle with the Mets!
Pache and Springer both play CF, what’s your plan on that? Pache will be CF for years to come at a minimum salary.
Springer has played quite a bit of RF over his career so that would not be an issue
Did you forget who plays RF for the Braves?
Yeah great idea, but they aren’t adding $30 million more to the payroll. It would actually be a great idea, but springer is older that most think he is actually older than Ozuna, by 1 year. The right move for ATL if they are adding that kind of money I’d trade for Arenando push back the opt out for 1 year and have the Rockies kick in money if he opts in. Stanton structure, kick in 10 million in 21 & 22, and an additional 34 million if he opts i, no money if he opts out.
Springer can buy a new home in Toronto with the contract he’ll make, so being “close to home” is irrelevant.
Is Canada going to allow baseball in Toronto or are they playing a home game in Buffalo again?
For your sake I really hope you are making some sort attempt at a joke…
Jays can come right after the virtual parade for the Bills.
No, Canada has said that until things change, the Canadian border will be closed. Blue Jays have not got permission to play baseball in Canada in 2021 and I don’t think they will.
Having to uproot your family to a new city is not “irrelevant”.
For the amount of money he’ll get from the Blue Jays or anybody else, nobody in his family would have to lift a finger to do the physical part of the moving, and he’ll have more than enough to bring the entire family with him if he so pleases. Children are still doing Zoom classes in most places, so it’s not like they’ll be going back to a physical school until late in the year or 2022, by which time they’ll be settled into the new city.
if the DH spot is back id have to imagine the Braves at least take a serious look at the OF market after losing Duvall and Ozuna. obviously they have Waters too, but why force yourself to need him when you dont have to?
the whole DH fiasco is so stupid. they need to just tell teams a concret answer. i’m still shocked they let go of Duvall though. it’s not like he was expensive and he provides pop and plus defense in left.
I liked the idea of a Duvall/Pederson platoon in left. Still do, actually.
Why type like a five year-old when you don’t have to?
Basically the Yankees never made an offer for Lindor because he was never a need
The yanks don’t need a SS? Or SP?
Very astute….
heard of that Torres guy?
Heard of capitalizing sentences?
Lindor would be the best position player on the Yankees and Carrasco the 2nd best SP on the team right now. This is factoring in the resigning of Lemahieu and the signing of Kluber.
I think the Yanks could have used them.
Lindor is great but man is he overrated… he’s like Harper, very good but the legend built up by one great year according to WAR.
Jays gotta get some pitching. We need 1 top of the rotation Starter. At minimum a mid rotation starter. Bullpen needs to have some bullets in the chamber. AJ Cole can’t be the only bullpen addition this offseason. In my opinion Springer is too rich for what this team truly needs.
Pay Bauer 50 mill a year in order to get him signed. It’s not my money!! Then go get a closer and some bullpen help! Let’s go Jays
Jays need both a top end starter and a mid rotation guy. They need a very good CFer with a bat. They could use a closer too.
Lindor was never a need for the Yankees because they knew that they were re-signing LeMahieu. However, they are going to lose a few close games with Gleyber manning SS!
That is most important during the playoffs. No doubt that the Yankees win the AL East. At least on paper it seems that they have a huge advantage even though their rotation is not set as yet. It will be, by June….
I like AA’s way of doing business. In a perfect world he gets a RH bat to hit behind Freeman but options for that are limited and the option that seem to be there are costly
I want Rosario on a 2 year pillow deal
I want him or Brantley
I like Rosario too…but he can’t be the only move. It has to be him plus another move to lengthen the lineup. Especially if the DH is back.
I don’t understand why everyone keeps pushing Springer to the Mets. Adding $25 million/year in payroll makes no sense when Conforto, Thor, Stroman, and now Lindor are all free agents next year. Conforto/Nimmo/Smith plus adding a defense-first 4th (and/or 5th) outfielder is perfectly fine. Spend whatever money is left on that defense-first outfielder and a project starting pitcher instead of Springer.
rct, I don’t see why Philadelphia doesn’t make an offer to Springer
As an Astros fan, I’ve been screaming for years that Springer will eventually head northeast. Another factor is that his wife is from New York.
Another factor his wife works for SNY
I think _________ (insert favorite team here) should sign ______________, ________________, and ____________ (insert names of top three free agents and then trade ___________ and __________ (insert names of two players who are being paid more than they are worth) for _____________ (insert name of young star player); and the only reason this won’t happen is that ____________ (insert name of favorite team’s owner) is the worst owner in all of sports.
I believe there is a “reverse homerism” when it comes to fans and their teams’ front offices.
Regular homerism causes fans to overvalue their teams’ prospects and think they are the next coming of Mantle or Mays. Revere homerism causes fans to think their teams’ GMs and/or owners are the absolute worst.
Sounds like Philly fans recently…
Typical Shatkins. A real GM would move their team closer to potential targets hometowns. Fire them now!
Poor real estate agents….”What do you mean, ‘the Blue Jays are interested in seeing 30 different properties?'”
The Yankees don’t need Lindor they need Luis Castillo. Three top fifteen prospects and Tauchman to Cincy c’mon Cashman get it done.
I don’t understand why Yankee fans thing Tauchman holds value in trades like these. He’s approaching 30 and has had like a half second of major league success.
His value is, he’s still on the right side of 30, he’s relatively cheap, he can play above average defense across all 3 outfield positions, is a left-handed hitter, pretty decent speed, and when given consistent at bats can certainly be at least league average if not above…in this type of Covid affected season, just like the last, every team is looking for guys like Tauchman which is why most of the rumors about teams calling are probably correct……they’re looking for non-superstars, who don’t command a kings ransom in salary and can just play baseball.
Ever watch him play or just comment on the edges?
I’m not saying he doesn’t have value. I’m just saying that if I’m moving a guy like Castillo, I want future potential stars. A good, inexpensive, help-the-team-now, guy with a sparse track record doesn’t move the needle for me in that situation. I’m not counting on Tauchman being great for the next 5 years.
You’re giving up a 30 year old who they can’t build their next team on, and I’m sure you want those prospects to be toward the bottom of NYY’s top 15
If they deal Castillo, they aren’t competing before Tauchman is 34-35. That does NOTHING to help their rebuild. He has value to a current contender sure. But not so much to a team who’s resetting their window
Garcia, Schmidt, Dominguez and Peraza get you in the front door. Probably need Florial and the Reds throw in Akiyama and you get it done.
Don’t think Dominguez is going anywhere in any trade at this time.
Yes Dominguez will linger in AAA for a season or two, and Castillo isn’t going to NYY without him in the deal.
No way, that’s way too much. Look at the market and reassess this trade. I agree with what you say if you subtract Dominguez, but if you add him in, absolutely not. Of course, this all depends on how bad the Yankees want him and how willing are the Reds to part with him.
I’m basing my valuation on current market trades. Reds wouldn’t get close to that much for him.
I don’t think the Yankees are a good match for Cincinnati to trade with they don’t have the young controllable players that Cinci would want. No the Reds have absolutely no interest in Tauchman.
Ah, I haven’t read one blog, especially a Yankee blog that said Tauchman was the headliner, let alone even included in any potential trade with the Reds.
If there is indeed a trade involving Castillo, it is going to cost a ton of minor league talent, plus Frazier and probably Andujar also to get him.
All told, both Frazier and Andujar, plus the minor leaguers all classify as “young controllable players” don’t you agree?….all told, that whole group together doesn’t equal Castillo’s current salary.
I don’t think Andujar really has much of any value right now. Frazier,Garcia and Dominguez might get it done. I’m guessing New York doesn’t want to trade Dominguez though. If they really want Castillo I think they would have to trade Dominguez.
More like 3 top prospects andujar and Frazier to get that done. And the yanks would also take back castellanos or a moustakas.
Mets definitely get Springer and most likely Hand and Castillo.
Dreaming aren’t you? Anybody else you want to acquire just because its the Mets?
Why not?
Agreed man! Dreaming is okay in this Covid world of ours….why not!
How can I help?
What were u giving up for Castillo?
Davis Nimmo Mauricio
Not even in the ballpark.
Cincy isn’t having a fire sale. They were in contention last year, remember. I’m guessing they want to improve their financials while remaining in the race. Prospects only won’t get a deal done. They’ll need major league talent included in return. So – a bit painful – how about Castillo and Votto (or Castellanos?) to Jays for a package built around Vlad Jr? Probably a good minor league pitching prospect needs to be also sent to Reds to fill rotation loss. Shedding a salary should help Cincy make an offer to a FA pitcher too, like an Odorizzi..Jays get a controllable ace on a very economical contract, and a proven bopper. Love to see the Jays go after Paxton too. He’s Canadian, so playing for Toronto shouldn’t bother him. However the offseason maneuvers proceed, Jays-Yanks could turn into a fun rivalry soon.
Votto wont leave Cincinnati. Even to come home
Braves gonna sign Eddie Rosario
Without Ozuna/Donaldson type move, the Braves offense is not very intimidating. Their pitching likely makes them the team to beat in the NLE, but when teams don’t have to pitch to Freddie, that team is not nearly as scary
The Braves right now are above average offensively at every position other than CF, LF and possibly 3B. There’s still time to address LF. I think they’ll roll with Pache in CF and Riley at 3B. Both of them are young and have a good chance to improve.
Riley has too long of a swing, and he has no chance against high velocity just look at games in the playoffs against the Dodgers. He swung 3 times against Buehler and he had no chance.
I actually like reading about the negotiations of these deals afterwards. Cool to see how sometimes we believe our teams are cheap but then go and find out we were so close to acquiring x player.
Yeah, Braves fans thought the team was being cheap when they didn’t re-sign Donaldson. Then the terms of his deal came out and we were like “Ok, cool. Glad we didn’t go there”.
“ Nothing wrong with livin in Merica, drivin an F150 with a window rack and rooting for the Pinstripes.”
Yes there is. 🙂
Cigar Guy needs to write some checks in Philly. Sign these three FAs: Realmuto, Didi and Jurikson Profar (CF). CBP will be rocking again this summer like the good old days (2007-2011). Of course, all that ‘rocking” will depend upon if we fans are allowed to go.
Another day and the Jays still haven’t signed a soul… I’m already regretting the thing I said about patience.. Ummm, I think it’s about time we do something now. Make a trade, do something.
As someone who’s been blasted on this site for being critical of Jays management, there hasn’t been a move made by other teams where we can say “can’t believe the Jays missed out on that!”.
Sure, DJL would be great to have. Even Snell. But the moves the Jays need to make are still out there. I understand the frustration and I’m with ya. The guys are still available and it’s not quite time to crack down on them for not getting the job done.
If they use that money elsewhere like supposedly sign Bradley JR for CF, Semien 3B and Brad Hand, that would be much better for the Mets collectively. If you need to unload Salary you can look to unload Betances or Familia to another team.
If you dont get paid while on the d.l. the same way you didnt get paid from covid missed games, stanton would have made over the last cpl of years $168.38 before taxes