RADIO
Braves Eyeing Dallas Keuchel
12/9:The Atlanta Braves have free-agent starting pitcher Dallas Keuchel atop their wish list with the winter meetings starting on Monday. Atlanta is seeking a starter, a reliever and an outfielder. The left-hander doesn't strike out many, but his ground-ball profile would fit nicely in Atlanta's rotation. He won the American League Cy Young in 2015 and went 12-11 with a 3.74 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and 6.7 K/9 in 34 starts for Houston in 2018. Atlanta would be a nice landing spot for Keuchel's 2019 value.Source: Fan Cred - Jon Heyman
Padres Have Genuine Interest In J.T. Realmuto
12/9:The San Diego Padres are among the teams with genuine interest in trading for Miami Marlins catcher J.T. Realmuto, according to sources. Who doesn't? About half the league wouldn't mind trading for Realmuto, but the Marlins asking price is sky high for the best hitting catcher in baseball. Realmuto should be the first fantasy catcher off the board in next year's drafts no matter where he's playing in 2019. He could be traded during the winter meetings this week. The Yankees aren't seriously discussing him, as they have faith that Gary Sanchez will rebound next year.Source: MLB Network - Jon Paul Morosi
Giants Not Close To Trading Madison Bumgarner
12/9:The San Francisco Giants are not close to trading starting pitcher Madison Bumgarner with the winter meetings set to begin on Monday, according to a source. The Phillies, Brewers, Yankees and Braves are among the possible landing spots for Bumgarner if he winds up being traded. MadBum has a year left on his deal and the Giants are looking to get younger going into 2019. The veteran left-hander and playoff legend is also getting older (30 next August) and has missed time with injuries the last two seasons. Still, Bumgarner is a high-end fantasy starter even if he might not be a fantasy ace moving forward.Source: MLB Network - Jon Paul Morosi
Yankees Plan To Meet With Manny Machado
12/9:The New York Yankees like free-agent shortstop Manny Machado and will meet with him, but a source says that they will not pay $300 million to secure his services. The Phillies, White Sox and maybe some mystery teams are seen as the main competitors to the Yankees for Machado. The 26-year-old lost some appeal to prospective suitors because of his lack of hustle and drama on the field, but he still remains one of the best overall shortstops both offensively and defensively, and he will get paid handsomely. The Yanks could use him at the 6 with Didi Gregorius expected to miss around half of next year. Machado should be an early-round target in fantasy drafts no matter where he lands in free agency.Source: Fan Cred - Jon Heyman
Mets Unwilling To Trade Amed Rosario
12/9:The New York Mets are unwilling to trade shortstop Amed Rosario in a package for Miami Marlins catcher J.T. Realmuto, and they also do not want to include both outfielders Michael Conforto and Brandon Nimmo. The Marlins will be asking for a ton in exchange for the best hitting catcher in baseball and the Mets just gave up two of their top-five prospects to acquire closer Edwin Diaz and second baseman Robinson Cano. While it's understandable why the Mets would want to keep some of their good young players, but the two teams don't seem to match up for a deal of Realmuto right now.Source: Fan Cred - Jon Heyman
Kyle Schwarber Not Available
12/9:Several teams that have inquired about Chicago Cubs outfielder Kyle Schwarber have been told that he's not available. Schwarber swings and misses a lot, but he also has a ton of power from the left side, hitting .238/.356/.467 with 26 home runs and 61 RBI in 137 games in 2018. Schwarber has 56 dingers in the last two seasons and doesn't look to be on the move this offseason.Source: USA TODAY Sports - Bob Nightengale
Mets Losing Momentum In Trades
12/9:The New York Mets have lost momentum on potential trades involving starting pitcher Noah Syndergaard and Miami Marlins catcher J.T. Realmuto. They are highly motivated to acquire Realmuto, but the Marlins high asking price has the Mets feeling less optimistic that a trade will get done heading into the winter meetings next week. Because almost half the league wants Realmuto, the Marlins feel justified asking for shortstop Amed Rosario and outfielder Brandon Nimmo. Trade talks around Syndergaard and Indians starting pitcher Corey Kluber have also cooled. The Mets want a slam-dunk trade offer if they are to move Thor. Things can change quickly next week, so don't count anything out.Source: SNY - Andy Martino
Mike Napoli Retires Saturday
12/8:Free-agent first baseman/designated hitter Mike Napoli announced on Twitter on Saturday that he is retiring from baseball. His best season in the big leagues came with the Red Sox in 2011 when he hit .320 with a .631 slugging percentage, 30 home runs and 75 RBI. He'll finish his 12-year career with a .246/.346/.475 slash line, 267 home runs and 744 RBI in 1,392 games. He last played for the Rangers in 2017 and had 29 homers and 66 RBI.Source: Dallas Morning News
Yadier Molina To Have Knee Surgery
12/8:St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina (knee) will have surgery on his knee next week, but his agent, Melvin Roman, described the procedure as "a simple thing" to help clean out the knee. President of baseball operations John Mozeliak said it will be a "very small procedure" and that Molina should only be out a few days. It's not expected that this surgery will have a negative affect on his spring training or 2019 season. Although this shouldn't affect him heading into next year, it's a remind that Molina will be 37 next July and has a ton of tread on his tires. Still, he hit .261/.314/.436 with 20 home runs and 74 RBI in 123 games last year and was one of the league's better hitting catchers. He could have a few more strong seasons left in him, but the risk of injury is very real at this stage of his career.Source: St. Louis Baseball Weekly - Brian Stull
Carlos Asuaje Designated For Assignment
12/8:San Diego Padres second baseman Carlos Asuaje was designated for assignment on Friday to make room for newly-signed starting pitcher Garrett Richards on the 40-man roster. The move likely concludes Asuaje’s three-year stint with the Padres where he slashed .240/.312/.329 across 586 plate appearances. With Luis Urias projected as the starting second baseman for 2019, the move isn’t unexpected. It could also mean the arrival of shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. is more imminent than previously thought. Asuaje could land with another squad but his long-term role as a major leaguer is uncertain.Source: Twitter - AJ Cassavell
Trevor Cahill Attracting Interest From Handful Of Teams
12/8:Free-agent starting pitcher Trevor Cahill is drawing interest from "four or five" teams after going 7-4 with a 3.76 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 8.2 K/9 over 21 outings (20 starts) for the A's last season. The right-hander has been injury-prone, which keeps his value somewhat limited in mixed leagues, but Cahill can be quite underrated when healthy and can put up decent strikeout numbers in the right matchups. A return to pitcher-friendly Oakland would probably be the best for his fantasy value in 2019.Source: Fan Cred - Jon Heyman
White Sox Interested In Marwin Gonzalez
12/8:The Chicago White Sox are believed to be interested in free-agent infielder/outfielder Marwin Gonzalez. While Gonzalez wasn't as good in 2018 as he was in 2017, he still managed 16 home runs and 68 RBI in 489 at-bats and offers fantasy owners with a variety of positions to play him at. The switch-hitter will be 30 next March but can play all over the diamond and would surely see regular at-bats with the rebuilding Pale Hose in a nice hitting environment. Gonzalez can be useful for his power and versatility in deep mixed and single-universe leagues.Source: Fan Cred - Jon Heyman
Reds Not Close To Extension For Scooter Gennett
12/7:The Cincinnati Reds and second baseman Scooter Gennett haven't made any progress in contract-extension talks after starting discussions in July. "I wouldn't expect it before the calendar turns [to 2019]," president of baseball operations Dick Williams said. "There's too much up in the air in terms of roster construction going forward. I don't think you'll see us working on any extensions for anybody -- that's not just Scooter-specific. But I don't see any other extensions happening in the next 30 days while we're working out the roster." Gennett will become a free agent after next season and has put up two great years with the Reds basically out of nowhere. He hit .310/.357/.490 with 23 home runs and 92 RBI in 2018 and has solidified himself as one of the better hitting power second baseman in the big leagues.Source: MLB.com - Mark Sheldon
Nationals Owner Essentially Rules Out Re-Signing Bryce Harper
12/7:Washington Nationals owner Mark Lerner virtually ruled out the team re-signing outfielder Bryce Harper on Friday. The Nats offered Harper a 10-year, $300 million deal on the last day of the regular season and are unlikely to make another offer after he rejected it for aread more...
A's Willing To Bring Jonathan Lucroy Back
12/7:The Oakland Athletics are focused on re-signing catcher Jonathan Lucroy to a one-year deal, according to sources, but it's unclear if he's interested in just a one-year contract. The A's don't want to give a multi-year deal to a catcher with prospect Sean Murphy waiting in the wings. They have checked in on free-agents Wilson Ramos and Matt Wieters in case they don't bring back Lucroy. They are unlikely to spend more than $5 million at the position. Lucroy handled Oakland's pitching staff very well last year, but he hit just .241/.291/.325 with four home runs and 51 RBI in 126 games. He's fallen far since his All-Star season in 2016 with the Brewers, and remaining in the pitching-friendly environment in Oakland won't make him attractive to fantasy owners in single-catcher leagues.Source: San Francisco Chronicle - Susan Slusser
