Major League Baseball season is here, and with it comes each fun day of rumours, news, and notes. Below, you can find all of the highlights from rooftops on Wednesday.
red socks Presenting new offers to Bogaerts and Devers
The Red Sox have made two new contract offers to Xander Bogaerts and one new offer to Rafael Devers since the end of the World Series, Team boss Sam Kennedy told L.L.C Boston Globe At owners meetings Wed. The terms of the offers are unknown. Bogaerts is a free agent after opting out of his contract, while Devers is set to become a free agent later in the off season.
“We’ve been dealing with Xander since the end of this season, Scott (Boras), his agent, and I’ll leave it at that,” Kennedy said. “But we have productive conversations.”
Kennedy also admitted that the Red Sox “could have handled more effectively” Mookie Betts earlier in his career. Betts turned down several market extension offers during his time with the Red Sox and was eventually traded to the Red Sox Dodgers A year before free agency. Despite this, the Red Sox let it get to the point where Bogaerts opted out of his deal, and Devers is one year away from free agency.
sailorsAnd the blue jays Both consider helping after the trade
Seattle Mariners He added an All-Star cornerback Teoscar Hernández signed a three-player deal on Wednesday, but that doesn’t mean they’re done adding to their collection. Instead, Mariners continue to see external additions, According to John Morosi of MLB Network.
The Mariners currently have Hernández and Rookie of the Year Award Julio Rodríguez entrenched in their home court. They’re expected to trade Jesse Weinker this winter, presumably because they want to promote Jared Kilinick and a few other internal candidates. (The often injured Mitch Hanegger is a free agent.)
It’s unclear who the Mariners specifically are eyeing in free agency, but earlier this winter they were linked with top center field option Brandon Nimmo.
Funny enough, the Blue Jays were also linked with Nimmo on Wednesday after firing Hernandez and opening up a spot in their home ballpark. Toronto has always been looking for a left-handed bat to help balance their lineup.
Blue Jays executive Ross Atkins acknowledged that current quarterback George Springer would be open to changing positions, if Toronto had the opportunity to add a full-time position player to the mix:
Padres Prepare Martinez
The Padres have agreed to a new three-year deal with right agent Nick Martinez, worth $26 million, Based on the reports. Martinez had opted out of the remaining three years and $18 million in his old contract, which means he got a raise here.
CBS Sports ranked Martinez the 44th best free agent on the market. That’s what we wrote:
It would be cheating to write that Martinez looked different than we last saw him (he did spend four seasons in Japan, after all) but it’s true. new team. new haircut. new number. New jug. He’s done away with his over-the-head clinch in favor of a Clevingerian rocker step, and shortened his arm movement so that his hand goes just below his belt line, not midway through. But on the one hand, he remained the same: an inconspicuous role. Martinez started the season in the rotation and spent the rest of the year in the bullpen, becoming one of two pitchers to record five starts and a save (Garrett Whitlock being the other). Martinez has a varied arsenal good enough to spark stalking and suppress good contact, but not loud enough to rack up huge hitting totals. (Even in relief, he averaged eight K’s per nine innings.) Of course, it only takes one team to view it as a starter and then get paid like a starter.
Martinez joins Robert Suarez as the relievers they re-signed this winter.
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