Bryce Harper

Phillies Reportedly Favorites To Sign Bryce Harper

By Connor Byrne | January 13, 2019 at 12:40pm CDT

SUNDAY: The Phillies are “clear-cut” favorites to sign Harper, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale hears from multiple sources. The Nationals, on the other hand, are fading in the sweepstakes, and team executives are calling it a “long shot” that he’ll re-sign with them. Nightengale reports. Washington isn’t prepared to pay Harper more than $25MM per year, Nightengale suggests. The Phillies, meanwhile, haven’t submitted a formal offer to Harper yet, but that should change during the upcoming week, according to Nightengale.

SATURDAY: After conducting a face-to-face meeting in Las Vegas with free-agent outfielder Bryce Harper on Saturday, the Phillies “remain optimistic” they’ll emerge from the offseason having signed him or free-agent infielder Manny Machado, Matt Breen of Philly.com reports. At the very least, the Phillies will be finalists for both Harper and Machado, Breen adds.

The Phillies entered the winter with owner John Middleton declaring that money wouldn’t stand in the way of upgrading a team which has missed the playoffs seven years in a row. And signing either Harper or Machado has always stood out as the clearest path to improving the Phillies’ roster, as the two 26-year-old superstars are easily the premier players on the open market. Given both the Phillies’ financial might and their need for at least one of those players, it’s “likely” they’ll put forth the richest offers for both Harper and Machado, according to Breen.

If the Phillies are only able to pick one, it’d be Machado, whom they “seem to prefer,” Breen writes. However, the Phillies have “signaled” to him that they are also interested in Harper – a move that Breen posits could pressure Machado to accept an offer from them. Notably, since the Phillies met with Machado in December, they’ve added one of his confidants to their staff, having hired former Orioles infield coach Bobby Dickerson in the same role. Dickerson was with the Orioles during Machado’s entire run with the team from 2012-18. Meanwhile, the White Sox – who look like the only other team seriously pursuing Machado – may have helped their chances this winter by acquiring the shortstop/third baseman’s brother-in-law, Yonder Alonso, and his friend Jon Jay. But if money, not personal ties, ends up being the deciding factor in where Machado goes, signs are pointing to Philadelphia. After all, the White Sox’s only known offer to date was reportedly worth closer to $200MM than $300MM, and it may take a proposal nearer to the latter amount to lure Machado.

As with Machado, Harper has fewer franchises going after him than expected this offseason. Still, at least four teams – the Phillies, White Sox, Nationals and Dodgers – look to be in the running. It seems the Nationals, with whom Harper has spent his whole career since going first overall in the 2010 draft, are particularly strong in the derby. As of earlier this week, the Nats were reportedly upping their efforts to re-sign Harper, to whom they’ve already extended at least one offer worth well north of $300MM. Reports have indicated the Dodgers aren’t keen on making a long-term commitment, on the other hand, meaning Harper may have to choose among the Phillies, White Sox and Nationals if he has any hope of landing a record-setting contract.

NL Notes: Kluber, Padres, Dodgers, Harper, Nats, Cubs, Boras/Phils

By Ty Bradley | January 12, 2019 at 3:24pm CDT

The Padres persist in their dogged pursuit of Indians ace Corey Kluber, per MLB.com’s JP Morosi, who notes that the club would prefer to hold on to each of its top five prospects. The Tribe reportedly “have interest” in lefty Adrian Morejon, who, despite his status as a consensus top 50-75 prospect, wouldn’t fall into the aforementioned category in a loaded Padre farm. Still, it’s tough to see a deal consummated without one of those players; Cleveland, after all, has been widely reported to be seeking a Chris Sale-esque return for Kluber, and wouldn’t likely settle for even high-grade chaff. If the club is still interested in dealing the 32-year-old ace, the Padres would be seem a perfect fit: the club is loaded not only with blue-chip prospects, but also sport a glut of young, if underperforming, outfielders at every position. Morosi lists Manuel Margot and Hunter Renfroe as options, though the Tribe may also have its eyes on Franmil Reyes and Franchy Cordero, in addition to the richly-paid Wil Myers.

Harper & Machado Rumors: 1/9/19

By Jeff Todd | January 9, 2019 at 6:28pm CDT

The free agent market as a whole is moving at a plodding rate. Somewhat surprisingly, perhaps, there also hasn’t been a ton of action surrounding superstar free agents Bryce Harper and Manny Machado. Of course, with so much money at stake, perhaps it shouldn’t come as a shock that both players are taking some time to work out new deals.

The latest …

Heyman now indicates that Machado’s camp is looking not only for a $300MM+ offer but is still seeking a total guarantee that tops Giancarlo Stanton’s $325MM record (Twitter links). Furthermore, he adds that while there’s been no indication from the Yankees that they’re formally out of the running for Machado, New York has not yet made an offer and isn’t willing to go anywhere all that close to $300MM in order to sign Machado. Obviously, all of that can change quickly with one decision from ownership, but it’s not an encouraging update for Yankees fans hoping to see Machado in the Bronx in 2019 and beyond.

Earlier Updates

Machado is still looking for an offer in excess of $300MM, according to Jon Heyman of Fancred (Twitter link). The White Sox and Phillies are the only two teams known to have made formal proposals, neither of which have reached that value. Of course, the Philadelphia organization is reportedly set to put in another offer, the details of which remain unknown. The Yankees have also still yet to officially put anything on the table for Machado, Heyman adds.
Will there be significant movement? If so, when and by what mechanism? MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand hears that the markets for Machado and Harper are “heating up.” As his sources have it, the Phillies are “turning up” their efforts for the former, while the Nationals have “momentum building” to bring back the latter. Bruce Levine of 670theScore.com also cites a sense of market movement, but he hears it’s the White Sox who are gaining “momentum” on Machado. Levine also mentions a fourth, unknown potential suitor for Machado, though Heyman claims there’s “still no word” of a shadowy pursuer.
Generally, there’s still a dearth of hard information on the various teams’ stances regarding these players. It’s still easy to imagine the negotiations evolving in any number of different ways. Still, it’s striking that so few teams appear to be involved. The entire situation is a “disgrace,” Jim Bowden of The Athletic argues (subscription link). He ticks through a variety of ballclubs that should be able to fit $30MM+ salaries and have cause to be involved, decrying a market situation in which “essentially just four teams [are] legitimately bidding for the game’s two best free agents.” On the same note, Jonah Keri of CBS Sports provides some anonymous opinions on the matter from well-placed league executives. There seems to be at least something of a consensus that teams are less interested than ever in exceedingly lengthy contracts, even for players of such relative youth, with a variety of other theories batted around regarding this duo in particular. The story also delves into broader market topics and is well worth a read.

NL Notes: Harper, Machado, Rendon, Cubs, Mets

By Jeff Todd | January 7, 2019 at 8:45pm CDT

As outfielder Bryce Harper prepares to sit down with the Phillies, still-early intrigue seems to be brewing in his market. Notably, the Philadelphia organization has yet to make any formal offers to Harper, per NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Jim Salisbury, who notes it’s still not certain whether the team will do so. As has long been rumored, Manny Machado is still the apparent top choice of the Phils brass. Notably, per Salisbury, the club is “expected to make another offer” to Machado this week as his own market continues to develop.

Of course, Harper’s long-time club in D.C. still has interest in a reunion, with some intriguing recent information emerging of late. But that drama may be overshadowing an equally important aspect of the Nationals’ offseason: the possibility of a deal with pending free agent Anthony Rendon. As Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post writes, this Friday’s deadline to swap arbitration salary submissions may push the sides to think hard about the broader contractual situation. If talks on a long-term deal are progressing, perhaps the sides won’t bother trying to nail down a 2019 salary at this point. If not, they could well focus more energy on settling on an arb number before the exchange deadline. Beyond that, of course, there’s the question of Harper’s status and how it’ll tie into that of Rendon — who’s also a client of agent Scott Boras.
If all that’s not intriguing enough, the conflicting signals surrounding the Cubs’ interest in Harper remain an oddity of the winter. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic weighs in on the matter in a subscription post, suggesting there’s no reason to believe there’s a match. Indeed, per Rosenthal, the Chicago front office is so strapped for 2019 payroll space that it more or less can’t make any further acquisitions without clearing the cash to do so. The example he gives is reliever Adam Warren, the former Cubs hurler who performed better after his departure from the club. While Warren is certainly deserving of a MLB job and guaranteed money, there’s no reason to think he’ll be a particularly expensive player. As Rosenthal notes, there are still some available ways for the Cubs to clear salary space, though most would seem to involve weakening the MLB roster. Affording Harper, then, would seemingly require a change of heart from ownership or some true creativity.
As Mets GM Brodie Van Wagenen continues to tinker with the club’s 40-man roster, Rosenthal adds, it’s possible there’ll be a few more departures. Backstops Travis d’Arnaud and Tomas Nido have drawn interest and could follow Kevin Plawecki out the door. In such a scenario, it seems, the Mets would go onto the open market for another catcher. Dumping d’Arnaud would have the added benefit of clearing some real payroll space, though obviously a replacement would cost something as well.
Notably, as he continues to seek ways to upgrade the Mets bullpen, Van Wagenen seems largely to have run through his available funds, per Mike Puma of the New York Post (Twitter link). It seems the organization will mostly be bargain-hunting the rest of the way. That also explains the fact that the Mets have seemingly bowed out of the market for expensive outfielders. Per Andy Martino of SNY.tv, via Twitter, the club isn’t shopping Juan Lagares in trades — though a deal still hasn’t been ruled out entirely — and expects him to line up in center field, where he’ll be supplemented by the just-acquired Keon Broxton. Presumably, Broxton will also spell the team’s left-handed-hitting corner outfielders as well.

Phillies Planning Face-To-Face Meeting With Bryce Harper

By Mark Polishuk | January 7, 2019 at 4:34pm CDT

JANUARY 7: The meeting will occur this coming Saturday, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today. Phillies owner John Middleton will head up a contingent that will visit Harper and Boras in Las Vegas.

JANUARY 2: The Phillies are planning to meet with Bryce Harper in Las Vegas within “the next week or so,” a source tells NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Jim Salisbury. This comes on the heels of a Winter Meetings chat between the team and Scott Boras, Harper’s agent, that wasn’t attended by the free agent outfielder.

While Philadelphia has long been linked to Harper, it seems the team has directed much of its attention towards Manny Machado in recent weeks. Reports from the aftermath of Machado’s visit with the team indicated that the Phillies preferred Machado to Harper if they had to pick between the two superstars, and Salisbury writes that “Machado remains the Phillies’ primary focus.” That said, the Phillies know they have at least two other major suitors for Machado in the form of the Yankees and White Sox, so obviously it makes for the Phils to explore all options with Harper should Machado sign elsewhere.

The more nebulous nature of Harper’s market also presents some opportunity for the Phillies to strike, while there is some sense of a “final three” for Machado, there has yet to be such a level of concrete public interest exhibited by Harper’s suitors. The Dodgers, Nationals, White Sox, and Cubs (if they can free up some payroll) all have at least some level of interest in Harper, though other potential suitors like the Yankees, Cardinals, Giants, or Braves all seem to be on the periphery of talks, if involved whatsoever. Some teams already held face-to-face meetings with Harper during the Winter Meetings or at Harper’s home in Las Vegas, though the exact identities of the teams involved is still somewhat vague.

The Phillies have a clear positional need for Harper and seemingly little in the way of payroll constraints that other teams are facing to fit Harper within the luxury tax threshold. Therefore, there’s certainly room for the Phils to push their way to the front of the pack if they so desire. If the Phillies would indeed “probably have to significantly outbid the Yankees to land” Machado, as Salisbury writes, Philadelphia might prefer to simply direct its resources to a superstar that the Yankees (seemingly) aren’t pursuing.

Quick Hits: Boras, “Swellopts,” Anderson, A’s, Pence

By Mark Polishuk | January 6, 2019 at 11:50pm CDT

Over the last two offseasons, the Boras Corporation has negotiated innovative contracts for clients Zach Britton, Yusei Kikuchi, and Jake Arrieta that involved a dual-option year between the player and the team. In all three deals, the club can exercise a longer-term option over the player or decline that option, which gives the player the chance to either enact an opt-out clause or (in Kikuchi’s case) to add another player option season.

Scott Boras, never at a loss for colorful phrasing, describes this type of contract as a “swellopt,” as the agent tells The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (Twitter link). “For the club, if the player performs well, the club can opt in (contract swells). For the player, if the club doesn’t opt in, the player has the choice to continue with contract (swell) or opt out. It’s a swell option for both,” Boras explained. This type of contract structure could end up being more commonly used around baseball, and Joel Sherman of the New York Post details how teams in the hunt for Bryce Harper (another Boras client) or Manny Machado could deploy the “swellopt” to land on a favorable contract for both sides.

Some more from around the baseball world…

The Athletics have been in touch with Brett Anderson about a possible reunion in 2019, NBC Sports Bay Area’s Ben Ross writes. Multiple other teams have also shown interest in Anderson, so it isn’t certain if the veteran left-hander will have to settle for another minor league contract or if he’ll be able to land a Major League deal. Pitching for the A’s on a minors pact in 2018, Anderson delivered his typical low-strikeout, high-grounder performance, posting a 4.48 ERA, 3.62 K/BB rate, 5.27 K/9, and 55.6% grounder rate over 80 1/3 innings. Anderson’s season was shortened by two DL stints due to shoulder issues and a forearm strain, and these latest entries to the southpaw’s lengthy injury history could also certainly impact his chances at a guaranteed MLB contract. Anderson would hardly be a sure thing for the A’s, though the team is looking for all the rotation depth it can muster given the inexperience and injury-related question marks surrounding most of the names on the rotation depth chart.
Hunter Pence has received “several” offers from teams, the outfielder tells El Nuevo Diario’s Angel Luis Mercedes (hat tip to John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle). After a pair of down years, Pence is attempting to trigger a late-career rebound in his typical unique fashion, by attempting to overhaul his swing while playing in the Dominican Winter League. Given Pence’s lack of success in 2017-18, Shea figures the veteran’s offers are of the minor league variety, as teams will give Pence a look in Spring Training to see if his new swing holds any promise.

NL Notes: Epstein, Cubs, Broxton, Braves, Dodgers

By Mark Polishuk and Steve Adams | January 6, 2019 at 9:17pm CDT

The Cubs’ reported lack of spending capacity has been the offseason’s main storyline out of Wrigley Field, though in a recent radio interview on 670 The Score (partial transcript here), president of baseball operations Theo Epstein dismissed the idea that the Competitive Balance Tax is “dictating any of our actions or inactions this winter at all.” In regards to the $206MM threshold, “there are times when strategically you want to make sure you’re under it or where you don’t mind going above it. This isn’t one of those offseasons where strategically it makes a heckuva lot of difference to us,” Epstein said. “It’s just sort of traditional budgeting. You spend what you have. You don’t spend what you don’t have….We have more than enough resources to win, and that’s the way we’re going to continue to approach it.”

It should be noted that the Cubs are already over the CBT threshold, as Roster Resource calculates a luxury tax figure of slightly under $228.5MM for the current 40-man roster. If crossing the $206MM line altogether isn’t a concern for Epstein and his front office, a bigger issue could be the $246MM threshold, which would trigger a larger tax payment for the Cubs and a ten-position drop in the first round of the 2020 draft. If this estimated $17.5MM of payroll space is what the team really has to work with, it still doesn’t leave room for a major addition like Bryce Harper, who has been rumored as a target if the Cubs can shave some more salaries off the books.

Here’s more from around the National League…

The Brewers’ deep outfield and Keon Broxton’s out-of-options status made him a trade chip for the club, GM David Stearns told reporters (including the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Tom Haudricourt) in the aftermath of the trade that sent Broxton to the Mets. “Teams are smart, so they looked at our outfield situation and saw we had a couple of out-of-option players who are talented,” Stearns said. “Teams have been poking around on Keon since the end of the season. We discussed scenarios with different teams and this is the one that finally went over the (finish) line.” In regards to any outfield additions, Stearns said the team will do its due diligence, but overall, “we are comfortable with the options we have at this point.”
“There’s no timetable for a resolution” in the dispute between the Braves and first-round draft pick Carter Stewart, Gabriel Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes. As detailed by The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (subscription required) in early October, the MLBPA filed a grievance claiming that Stewart failed to reach an agreement with the Braves after his physical turned up ligament damage in his wrist, and he’s now seeking to be declared a free agent by Major League Baseball. The grievance alleges that the Braves did not offer Stewart 40 percent of his slot value, which is the minimum offer that must be made to a player in order to receive a compensation pick in the following year’s draft. Stewart was the eighth overall pick in the 2018 draft, so Atlanta stands to be picking ninth overall in the 2019 draft unless Stewart’s grievance results in a favorable ruling for the young right-hander. Needless to say, it would be a big setback for the Braves if they missed out on such a high pick and received no compensation whatsoever, so this situation is certainly worth monitoring in the coming weeks or months until some decision is finally reached.
“The degree to which the Dodgers pursue [Bryce] Harper will say a lot about where they are headed as a franchise,” Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times opines. The Dodgers have been rumored to be suitors for Harper all winter, particularly since the team created outfield space and luxury tax space in the Yasiel Puig/Matt Kemp trade with the Reds. Rather than a long-term mega-deal for Harper, however, the Dodgers have reportedly been more interested in offering shorter-term contracts with a higher average annual value, though Hernandez wonders why money is suddenly an object for a big-market franchise that spent freely for years. Hernandez argues that L.A. fans won’t be impressed by a sudden restraint in spending, particularly after a season that saw the Dodgers duck under the luxury tax threshold and thus perhaps leave themselves short-handed for the World Series.

Quick Hits: Free Agency, Harper, Machado, Tulo, Kikuchi, Red Sox

By Mark Polishuk | January 4, 2019 at 10:59pm CDT

Why are Bryce Harper and Manny Machado still available on the free agent market, with relatively few teams in the hunt for two 26-year-old stars? As The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (subscription required) explores, their situation is another sign of how baseball’s “current economic system is outdated and flawed.” Teams are increasingly leery of signing players to ultra-long contracts, yet are also just as worried about signing players to contracts with fewer years but higher average annual salaries out of fear of crossing the luxury tax threshold. The result is “baseball’s version of a Catch-22,” Rosenthal writes, and he also points out that teams seem unnaturally adverse to making luxury tax payments given that relatively tiny amount of money actually spent on the tax.

More from around the game as we head into the weekend…

In a conference call with reporters (including ESPN.com’s Coley Harvey) today, Yankees GM Brian Cashman said that he kept in contact with Manny Machado’s camp, and let them know in advance about the team’s plan to sign Troy Tulowitzki. Beyond that, Cashman unsurprisingly didn’t share details about New York’s pursuit of Machado, and in fact stressed that Tulowitzki is atop the club’s depth chart at shortstop, at least until Didi Gregorius is healthy. “We have really reacted in a positive way to have that type of dialogue with Troy and to commit to giving him that opportunity to be our everyday shortstop,” Cashman said. Of course, this doesn’t necessarily close the door on the idea of Machado joining the Yankees — beyond just gamesmanship on Cashman’s part, Machado could also be deployed as a third baseman, with Miguel Andujar then either moving to first base or perhaps traded to another team.
Yusei Kikuchi received several seven-year contract offers from teams, agent Scott Boras told reporters (including TJ Cotterill of the Tacoma News Tribune) during Kikuchi’s recent introductory press conference. While such offers guaranteed Kikuchi more security, they also would’ve required Kikuchi to adopt a regular MLB workload right away, which concerned both the southpaw and Boras given how several Japanese pitchers in the past have suffered arm injuries while adapting from a Japanese pitching schedule to North American baseball’s every-five-days rotation lineup. Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto answered those concerns with both a unique plan for managing Kikuchi’s arm and innings, as well as a contract that could last three, four, or seven years in length.
Pitching has gone from a weakness to a strength for the Red Sox over the last five seasons, and Alex Speier of the Boston Globe details how the club upgraded its scouting and development system to better identify talent and then further build on that talent once on the Sox roster. Speier delves into the team’s acquisition of Nathan Eovaldi at the trade deadline, and how Eovaldi took on some tips from pitching coach Dana LeVangie and assistant pitching coach Brian Bannister to make his fastball more of a weapon. These tweaks and an increased usage of his curveball took Eovaldi’s performance up another notch (after he already pitching well for the Rays) after joining the Red Sox, and he then was one of the stars of Boston’s World Series run.

White Sox Have Made Formal Offer To Manny Machado

By Steve Adams | January 4, 2019 at 1:20pm CDT

Jan. 4: In a full column, Nightengale cites four sources in reporting that Chicago has indeed issued an offer to Machado. However, while there’s no specific dollar amount revealed, he suggests that it’s “likely closer to $200 million than $300 million” in total value.

Meanwhile, Fancred’s Jon Heyman characterizes the Sox as a “long shot” for Harper (Twitter link), perhaps further underscoring that Chicago is more focused on Machado. It’s worth noting, however, that Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times writes that the South Siders’ presentation to Harper “impressed [him] more than he anticipated.”

Regardless, a Machado agreement hardly seems imminent. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic writes (subscription required) that agent Dan Lozano is “barely engaging” teams on Machado at the moment and is instead “waiting for a team to jump.” The White Sox’ offer, while somewhat of a jump, doesn’t sound the be in the vicinity that most expected Machado to command.

Jan. 3: The White Sox have been frequently linked to both Bryce Harper and Manny Machado this offseason, but USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweets that they’re more engaged on Machado at the moment and recently extended a formal offer to the free-agent infielder. The ChiSox has not yet taken that step with Harper, Nightengale adds.

Details of the prospective contract aren’t known, though the very fact that a formal offer has been put forth is nonetheless notable. The White Sox have been motivated all offseason to add some established big league talent to their roster as they look to begin emerging from a rebuild, but to this point, the biggest names they’ve added have been reliever Alex Colome and right-hander Ivan Nova — both via the trade market. Adding Machado to the mix would be a clear signal that the Sox are earnestly attempting to turn the page.

The White Sox, though, have competition for both Harper and Machado, regardless of whether formal offers have been made or not. The Yankees and Phillies are reported to be active pursuers of Machado, while the Dodgers, Nationals, Phillies and Cubs are among the teams most prominently linked to Harper. In that same vein, Nightengale tweets that the Phillies’ signing of David Robertson today will likely turn their focus to both Harper and Machado, and other teams expect Philadelphia to be the high bidder on both free agents.

Similarly, WEEI’s Rob Bradford wrote earlier today that the Phillies’ pursuit of Harper and Machado could impact their approach to addressing the bullpen; Bradford suggested that the Phils, who had interest in Craig Kimbrel, would likely bow out on Kimbrel if they signed Harper or Machado. The fact that the Phillies proactively pursued a more affordable option for the back of their bullpen is of at least some note if there was a sense that they wouldn’t make a play for one of the top two position players and Kimbrel.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported yesterday that the White Sox were willing to make an offer of 10 years or more to Harper, though Bruce Levine of CBS Chicago/670 The Score followed that by saying the ChiSox weren’t willing to go beyond seven years for either Harper or Machado. Whatever the White Sox’ threshold is, they’ve apparently made their starting point known to Machado at this point. With Philadelphia having wrapped up some bullpen business earlier today, it stands to reason that they’ll follow suit in the relatively near future as well.

Nationals Latest Offer To Bryce Harper Reportedly “Much More” Than $300MM

By TC Zencka | January 4, 2019 at 8:32am CDT

The twists and turns keep coming in the public on-again off-again courtship between the Washington Nationals and free agent outfielder Bryce Harper. The Athletic’s Jim Bowden tweeted last night that the Nationals latest offer to Harper was actually “much more” than the $300MM commonly quoted. Per Bowden, the 10-year, $300MM offer was merely the first offer the Nationals made to their erstwhile superstar. The offer as stated – seen by many as the low-end of what Harper might expect – has been the single biggest signifier that the Nats are ready to move on from Harper, but the ongoing entanglement between the two sides is evidently more complex.

There’s lots to read into this, of course, especially given recent rumblings about Harper. In the context of the White Sox being unwilling to move beyond a 7-year bid, sources from 670 The Score’s Bruce Levine said that Harper has multiple ten-year offers in hand. Presumably, this meant offers from multiple teams, but given the lack of specifics, we have been left to speculate about which teams might have already extended such a deal.

The Cubs are keeping tabs, but it doesn’t appear as if they’ve made an offer. The Phillies would be most people’s guess, but Harper himself didn’t attend Philly’s initial chat with Scott Boras during the winter meetings, which could presume it was more of a “testing of the waters” type precursor to the face-to-face meeting planned with Harper this week. There were mixed reports about the Dodgers meeting with Harper early in December, but besides the hailstorm of rumors set off by the Puig-Kemp trade, there hasn’t been much concrete linkage between the two sides since. The juiciest bit of news has been the recent report of a five-hour meeting just before Christmas between Harper, Boras, and Nationals owner Ted Lerner. Matter of fact, Levine’s mention of ten-year “offers” could just as easily refer to multiple ten-year offers from the Nationals. Combine that with Bowden’s tweet from last night and it’s hard not to put the Nats in pole position at this stage. Still, until something more concrete comes from Harper’s camp, the best we have is conjecture.

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