20 hours agoThe Colorado Rockies released right-hander
Connor Seabold on Wednesday to clear a spot for a potential Rule 5 draft pick, according to a source. Seabold hasn't been any good in his three years in the majors, and that continued in 2023, as he had a rough 7.52 ERA (5.75 FIP) and 1.65 WHIP while walking 28 and striking out 67 in 87 1/3 innings over 27 appearances (13 starts) for the Rockies. The 27-year-old will hope to latch on with another team on a minor-league deal. He has an 8.12 ERA and 1.77 WHIP with 86 strikeouts in 108 2/3 career innings at the big-league level since 2021 in 33 outings (19 starts) for the Rockies and Boston Red Sox.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com - Jonathan Mayo
20 hours agoJapanese free-agent right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto is expected to meet with the New York Yankees in the United States on Monday, according to a source. The Yankees are seen as one of the top candidates to sign Yamamoto along with the Boston Red Sox, San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs. It might be a stretch for the Yankees to take on both outfielder
Juan Soto and Yamamoto, but the Yankees are going to try after another disappointing finish outside the postseason in 2023. Yamamoto is one of the top available arms on the free-agent market this winter and is expected to command a deal in excess of $200 million after dominating in Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB Network - Jon Morosi
21 hours agoThe Chicago White Sox's asking price for right-hander
Dylan Cease is very high, as it should be for a player with two years of control and an $8 million contract. The Cincinnati Reds were asked for four of their top prospects in exchange for Cease, including right-handers
Rhett Lowder and
Chase Petty and their Nos. 9 and 11 position-player prospects. The 27-year-old Cease was the runner-up in the American League Cy Young voting in 2022, but he regressed the past season while seeing drops in his velocity and strikeout rate. The rebuilding White Sox are dead-set on dealing him this offseason, though, and Cease could certainly have a nice rebound campaign in 2024, depending on his landing spot. Despite control issues and a 4.58 ERA in 2023, Cease managed to fan over 200 hitters for the third straight season.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: 670 The Score - Bruce Levine
21 hours agoOnly medicals and minor details remain as the New York Yankees look to acquire outfielder
Juan Soto from the San Diego Padres, and a deal is expected to be done fairly soon. Once the deal is complete, the Yankees will also receive outfielder
Trent Grisham to back up their revamped started outfield of Soto,
Aaron Judge and
Alex Verdugo. The Padres are expected to receive pitchers
Michael King,
Drew Thorpe,
Jhony Brito and
Randy Vasquez and catcher
Kyle Higashioka in return in this blockbuster deal. The 27-year-old Grisham will become a fourth outfielder for the Yankees if the trade is completed after hitting under .200 with 13 home runs, 50 RBI, 15 stolen bases and 154 strikeouts in 555 trips to the plate over 153 games played.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: New York Post - Jon Heyman
21 hours agoPhiladelphia Phillies first baseman
Bryce Harper is hoping to discuss a contract extension with the club to stay with the team for the rest of his career. It was reported earlier this offseason that the Phillies also want to keep Harper around for the rest of his career, and we could have resolution on something before the start of the 2024 season. The 31-year-old superstar signed a 13-year deal with the Phils in 2019, but apparently both sides are interested in extending that out even further. Harper had Tommy John surgery last offseason and got a late start in 2023 as a result, but it didn't slow the seven-time All-Star down, as he hit .293/.401/.499 with a .900 OPS, 21 home runs, 72 RBI and 11 stolen bases in 126 regular-season games in 2023 in his fifth year with the team. He will be the team's primary first baseman moving forward.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Philadelphia Inquirer - Scott Lauber
21 hours agoFree-agent right-handed reliever
Craig Kimbrel and the Baltimore Orioles agreed to a one-year, $13 million deal on Wednesday, according to sources. The contract includes a $13 million club option for the 2025 season. Talks between the two sides began to heat up on Tuesday night, and the O's have now secured the 35-year-old closer at the Winter Meetings. He had a nice 3.26 ERA with 94 strikeouts and 23 saves during the regular season in 2023 for the Philadelphia Phillies. Kimbrel, a nine-time All-Star, has 417 career saves in 14 big-league seasons with seven different teams. With
Felix Bautista (elbow) out for all of the 2024 season, it seems likely that Kimbrel is going to serve as Baltimore's primary closer, which will make him a high-end fantasy closing target in spring drafts.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: ESPN.com - Jeff Passan
22 hours agoFree-agent pitcher
Frankie Montas (shoulder) is "fully healthy" and "in great demand," according to his agent Scott Boras. The Yankees are among the clubs who have reached out to the right-hander. A shoulder injury limited the 30-year-old to just one outing and 1 1/3 innings of work in the 2023 season while he walked one and struck out one in that time. The Yankees originally acquired him in a 2022 trade-deadline deal with the Oakland A's, and he made eight starts for the club down the stretch but struggled to a 6.35 ERA in that time. Montas broke out with a 2.63 ERA in the 2019 season and put forth a 3.37 ERA as recently as the 2021 season before shoulder issues limited him the last couple of seasons.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: Bryan Hoch
22 hours agoThe free agent market for outfielder
Michael A. Taylor is starting to take shape as the Reds, Red Sox, and Blue Jays are three teams showing interest in the veteran. Taylor put forth a solid combination of power and speed at the plate in 2023 as he slugged 21 home runs and stole 13 bases in just 388 trips to the plate. However, he also hit just .220 alongside a 33.5% K%, limiting him to a 96 wRC+ that sits 4% below the league average. Taylor's foremost contributions are with his glove as he has long been regarded as one of the best defensive center fielders in the sport. His low walk rates, high strikeout rates, and limited playing time put a hard cap on his fantasy value.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: Jon Morosi
22 hours agoMiami Marlins pitcher
A.J. Puk is going to be stretched out as a starter ahead of the 2024 season. While there is no guarantee the club will use him out of the rotation, the current plan is for him to be stretched out in case the club has an open rotation spot next season. Once a starter in the minor leagues, the left-hander has made all of his 142 big-league appearances as a reliever. He was traded from the A's to the Marlins prior to the 2023 season and went on to toss a 3.97 ERA across 58 outings with Miami, locking down 15 saves in the process. Puk is the owner of a career 3.72 ERA across 147 2/3 big-league frames alongside 19 saves. His attractive strikeout rates make him in interesting fantasy consideration if he works out of the Marlins' rotation in 2024.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: Isaac Azout
22 hours agoFree-agent pitcher
Eduardo Rodriguez met with clubs at the Winter Meetings and is reportedly down to two teams, with a decision expected by Thursday. The left-hander became a free agent after opting out of his contract with the Detroit Tigers following the 2023 season. Rodriguez spent two seasons in Detroit, and while his 2022 campaign was limited due to injury and personal matters, he bounced back with a 3.30 ERA across 26 starts in the 2023 season. An eight-year MLB veteran, E-Rod has posted a career 4.03 ERA through 202 appearances (196 starts) between the Tigers and Boston Red Sox.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: Jon Heyman
22 hours agoThe Oakland A's selected New York Yankees pitching prospect Mitch Spence with the first pick of the major-league phase of the Rule 5 draft on Wednesday. Spence, 25, spent the entire 2023 season with the Yankees' Triple-A affiliate in Scranton/Wilkes/Barre and worked to a 4.47 ERA while making 29 starts spanning 163 innings of work, both of which are professional career-highs for the right-hander. By rule, Rule 5 drafted players must spend the entire season on the acquiring team's active roster or is forced to be offered back to their original organization. Spence was a 10th-round selection of the Yankees in the 2019 MLB Draft.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: Sam Dykstra
23 hours agoThe Houston Astros have acquired relief pitcher
Dylan Coleman from the Kansas City Royals in exchange for minor-league pitcher Carlos Mateo. The 27-year-old made 18 appearances for the Royals in the 2023 season but struggled to an 8.84 ERA alongside a massive 19.8% BB%. However, Coleman was far better in the 2022 season when he turned in a 2.78 ERA, albeit along with an elevated 12.8% BB%, across 68 appearances and 68 innings with Kansas City. All told, Coleman sports a career 3.88 ERA across 96 big-league appearances, all with the Royals. For his part, Mateo, 19, posted a 5.19 ERA across seven outings with the Astros' Complex League team in the 2023 campaign.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: Chandler Rome
23 hours agoNew York Yankees infielder
DJ LeMahieu will be the team's starting third baseman next season, according to manager Aaron Boone. The Yankees had been mostly using LeMahieu as a utility infielder at third, second and first base, but he'll have a more permanent home at the hot corner in the Bronx in 2024. It means that
Oswald Peraza may have to spend more of his time in the outfield or as a bench bat, especially after the team just acquired outfielder
Alex Verdugo from the division-rival Boston Red Sox. The 35-year-old LeMahieu, a three-time All-Star, hit a career-low .243 (121-for-497) this past season with 15 home runs, 22 doubles, three triples, 44 RBI and 55 runs scored in 136 games. LeMahieu isn't much of an asset in the average department at this point, but he's a valuable table-setter for a Yankees lineup that could be adding superstar
Juan Soto this week.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com - Bryan Hoch
23 hours agoThe San Diego Padres are getting close to trading superstar outfielder
Juan Soto to the New York Yankees, but infielder
Jake Cronenworth is another trade candidate for the Padres this offseason. His seven-year, $80 million contract extension starts in 2024. However, Cronenworth has an eight-team no-trade clause that kicked in this offseason, which could make dealing him more difficult. The 29-year-old had a down year in 2023 after making the All-Star team in 2021 and 2022. Cronenworth finished on the injured list due to a fractured right wrist and hit just .229 (105-for-458) with 10 home runs, 24 doubles, seven triples, 48 RBI, six stolen bases and 54 runs scored in 127 games played. He should be ready in time for the start of the 2024 campaign, but his fantasy stock is down considerably going into next season.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: The Athletic - Dennis Lin
24 hours agoSan Diego Padres outfielder
Juan Soto being traded to the New York Yankees is now "close to being finalized," according to a source. If a blockbuster deal is completed, pitchers
Michael King and
Drew Thorpe, along with additional pieces, will head back to the Padres. Soto has been New York's top priority this offseason as they look to give slugger
Aaron Judge more help in the middle of the batting order.
Clarke Schmidt is another pitcher that could be included in this deal as the Friars look to rebuild their starting rotation around
Yu Darvish and
Joe Musgrove. The 25-year-old Soto led all of baseball with 132 walks in 2023 and is still one of the best all-around hitters in the game. He slashed .275/.410/.519 with a .930 OPS, career-high 35 homers, 109 RBI and 12 stolen bases in 162 games in 2023 in San Diego.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB Network - Jon Morosi
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