Bleacherreport
Biggest Takeaways From GM Meetings to Kick Off 2024-25 MLB Free Agency
Z.Baker31 min ago
- Kirk Irwin/ The St. Louis Cardinals plan to take a step back in 2025, hoping to divert funds from their MLB payroll into a renewed focus on player development. (Why billionaire owner Bill DeWitt Jr. needs it to be one or the other is unclear, even with uncertainty surrounding their local TV deal.) The problem with trying to move veterans is that some of them are in position to say "." And at least with two, that appears to be what's happening. Willson Contreras—who has three seasons remaining on a five-year, $87.5 million deal—is moving from catcher to first base, the club announced this week. It doesn't appear that he'll be moving to a new team, though, because he has a no-trade clause through the 2026 season and Katie Woo of The Athletic said president of baseball operations John Mozeliak indicated that the 33-year-old "was very clear about his desires to stay in St. Louis." Derrick Goold of the said right-hander Sonny Gray "also shared with club a preference to stay at this time." Gray has a full no-trade clause, so if he wishes to stay with the Cardinals for the two remaining years on his contract, that will be what happens. Contreras and Gray will make $43 million combined in 2025, and it sounds as though that will be paid by the Cardinals. Had either been interested in being traded, there would have been a market for both, particularly the latter. The Cardinals could still try to trade eight-time All-Star third baseman Nolan Arenado. That might be complicated though too. He has a full no-trade clause, and even if he's willing to move, he can exercise control over the process with that. The 33-year-old is only due $52 million over the final three years of his contract, but his play has declined over the last two seasons. Arenado posted just a .719 OPS this past season. Closer Ryan Helsley is entering his final year of arbitration eligibility and could be a salary the Cardinals shed with relative ease if they choose to do so. MLB Trade Rumors' model has him projected to make $6.9 million in 2025, after he led baseball with 49 saves this past year. If this week is any indication, though, there might not be as many subtractions in St. Louis as initially expected.
- Jess Rapfogel/ You can definitely make a case for the Houston Astros, San Francisco Giants or Seattle Mariners making big pushes for Pete Alonso this offseason, but it still feels like his best fit will come somewhere East. Both New York teams—the Yankees and Mets—have made Juan Soto their No. 1 priority by all accounts. But each could well turn into a landing spot for Alonso as well. If the Yankees lose Soto, Alonso would be a natural pivot. Jon Heyman of reported this week that the Yankees have already "checked in" on the 29-year-old, one of the many notable free agents this offseason who is repped by Scott Boras. Obviously, the Mets are the incumbent. Alonso has hit 226 home runs for them in six seasons. If they aren't able to lure Soto to Flushing, circling back with Alonso makes sense. A potential dark horse could be the Washington Nationals. Three out of four of MLB Trade Rumors' staffers picked the Nationals as the landing spot for Alonso in free agency. It would actually make quite a bit of sense. With James Wood, CJ Abrams, Luis García Jr., Dylan Crews and Jacob Young, there's a lot of young talent in D.C. President of baseball operations Mike Rizzo has talked repeatedly about the possibility of the Nationals adding a veteran to their clubhouse, and Alonso would make sense both in terms of production at a position of need and experience.
- Chris Bernacchi/Diamond Images via Alex Bregman and Willy Adames are both arguably among the top five overall free agents this offseason, and each has indicated a willingness this week to move off of their primary position for the right opportunity. Boras told Bob Nightengale of that Bregman is "amenable" to playing second base, something that "several teams" have inquired about. Meanwhile, Will Sammon and Katie Woo of The Athletic heard that "Adames wants to stay at shortstop but would be willing to play a different position if he gets a strong offer from a team in position to win." The guess here is that Bregman will be a third baseman on Opening Day 2025, while Adames will be a shortstop. However, a willingness to be flexible can both increase suitors' interest and calm any fears you won't be able to stay at your desired position for the lifetime of a contract. Bregman played some shortstop earlier in his career, but he has settled in as a quality defender at third base. He actually just won a Gold Glove Award at the hot corner. However, for teams who have someone entrenched at third base but like Bregman's bat, showing that you are open to playing second base could be attractive. As for Adames, his defensive metrics fell off a cliff this past season. A year after posting eight defensive runs saved and 16 outs above average, he finished with minus-16 DRS and zero OAA. Again, the guess here is most suitors will envision him as their shortstop early in the deal, but it is nice to know things won't get ugly if a few years into a long-term deal the organization decides to move him elsewhere on the diamond.
- Rob Leiter/MLB Photos via Mookie Betts has helped the Dodgers to win two World Series in five seasons while playing in right field, but it appears that the organization still intends for him to play in the infield next season. According to Joel Sherman of The New York Post, Dodgers' general manager Brandon Gomes said that the expectation is Betts will play some combination of second base and shortstop in 2025. The Dodgers need to figure out who the primary double-play partner for Betts will be, but they've seen enough of him between second and shortstop the past two seasons to believe that he's a real fit there. Not having to run out to the outfield every inning and not having to canvas outfields in general—even if Betts is damn good at doing so—could help his longevity. What it means, though, is the Dodgers have a lot of question marks in the outfield. Will Tommy Edman be the everyday center fielder? Do the Dodgers believe Andy Pages and James Outman can be starting outfielders on a World Series team next season? Does Chris Taylor have anything left? Will Kiké Hernández return? You know what an easy way to feel better about the outfield would be? Re-sign Teoscar Hernández—who homered 33 times and posted an .840 OPS—to be your starter in one of the two corner outfield spots.
- Vaughn Ridley/ Despite finishing in last place in a crowded AL East at 74-88, the Toronto Blue Jays appear hell-bent on trying to contend in 2025. It's admirable on one hand, although it's fair to wonder if it's the best course of action for the long-term future of the franchise. Both Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. will be free agents after the 2025 season. General manager Ross Atkins told MLB Network's Jon Morosi this week, though, that the Blue Jays have no interest in trading the two-time All-Star shortstop. Toronto has also never seemed interested in discussing Guerrero as a trade candidate. He hit .323 with 30 home runs, 103 RBI and a .940 OPS this past year, so that's understandable. Still, it would be quite the risk to take both into their contract years. You could trade one or both of them before the trade deadline if you don't contend in 2024, although it will net a lower return than if you moved him this winter. You could keep both Bichette and Guerrero for all of 2025, knowing that you can extend a qualifying offer to them next offseason. But just getting a compensatory draft pick back if either leaves in free agency would be pretty underwhelming. It would be a lot easier to be on board with the Blue Jays trying to contend in 2025 if one or both of Bichette and Guerrero signs a long-term extension to remain in Toronto this winter.
- Matt Dirksen/ The Athletics may have a difficult time if they try to sign free agents with any options this winter—and they have hinted they will start to spend again—because they are going to spend at least the next three seasons playing at a Triple-A park in Sacramento. But one sign that the A's may be ready to start trying again as they move towards a potential move to Las Vegas is that general manager David Forst said this week that the team intends to hold onto slugger Brent Rooker. Rooker was a late bloomer, but has tapped into his tremendous power over the last two seasons, hitting 69 home runs, driving in 181 runs and posting an .836 OPS. He only played 102.1 innings in the outfield this past season, but it's fine having an entrenched DH when he's one of the elite run producers in baseball. Rooker recently turned 30 and is under team control through the 2027 season. Will he still be with the A's the next time they are contending and/or when they move to Las Vegas? Who knows. But it's refreshing to see the A's not operating as just a farm system for other teams.
- Rich Storry/ Skip Schumaker won't manage in 2025, but he has a new gig as a senior advisor to president of baseball operations Chris Young. The two were never teammates, but they played at the same time and could wind up being a strong long-term arrangement in Texas. Future Hall of Famer Bruce Bochy will return as the manager of the Rangers in 2025, and given that he led the club to a World Series in his first year on the job, he should get to stay as long as he wants. But managing an MLB team is an insanely draining job physically and mentally. Bochy will turn 70 next April. He probably doesn't have a ton of seasons left doing this. That makes the idea of having Schumaker waiting in the wings an interesting one. There's no indication that he's been told he's the manager in waiting, but it's fair to think if Bochy does walk away after 2025 that Schumaker will be the favorite to be his successor. Schumaker won NL Manager of the Year in 2023, leading the Marlins to the playoffs in his first year on the job, despite having a minus-57 run differential. A new front office/injuries gutted the roster over the last year, and Schumaker essentially tapped out in Miami after a 62-100 season. In a normal offseason, there's a good chance the 44-year-old would have been hired as a manager somewhere. There were so few openings this winter, and one of them was with his former employer. So he'll take a gap year, and probably re-emerge as a skipper somewhere soon. Maybe it will be with the Rangers, who also hired Luis Urueta to be their new bench coach, the same position he held under Schumaker the past two seasons with the Fish.
- Andy Kuno/San Francisco Giants/ So Posey knows the value of having the shortstop position figured out, which is why it wasn't surprising to hear the catcher-turned-president-of-baseball-operations say that the Giants want to figure that position out this offseason. The aforementioned Adames is an interesting free agent to consider, especially given the need for impact hitters in San Francisco's lineup. It's unclear, though, how the Giants view his troubling defensive metrics from 2024. Ha-Seong Kim might not be ready for Opening Day as he recovers from shoulder surgery, but the Giants have gotten to see firsthand how tremendous he is defensively, among other areas of his game, as he's played with the division-rival San Diego Padres. He could be a good addition on a pillow contract, with the chance to extend the relationship beyond 2025 if all goes well. Indeed, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com has reported that the Giants have interest in Kim.
- Alex Slitz/ You didn't think we'd go this far without discussing Soto, did you? In a recent B/R stream, Jon Heyman said that the six teams he's heard as suitors for Soto are the Yankees, Mets, Dodgers, Blue Jays, Giants and Boston Red Sox. Heyman had previously reported that Soto is targeting a $700 million contract. Whether or not he ultimately gets that number, the contract he signs is going to be insane. He's a Boras client, and they usually go to the top bidder. Given what he's accomplished and that he's still only 26, Soto probably has the greatest free-agent profile since another Boras client—Alex Rodriguez following the 2000 season. A-Rod eventually landed what was at the time a record-smashing 10-year, $252 million deal that included an opt-out after the seventh season. One way or another, Soto's contract is going to set records. As for a timeline, Boras was hesitant to commit to one this week. "Due to the volume of interest and Juan's desire to hear [from teams], I can't put a timeframe on it, but it's going to be a very thorough process for him," Boras said, according to ESPN's Jesse Rogers . "He wants to meet people personally. He wants to talk with them. He wants to hear from them." Lord willing, Boras will find a deal for Soto quicker than he did six years ago with Bryce Harper, who didn't come to terms with the Phillies until the end of February.
Read the full article:https://bleacherreport.com/articles/10142580-biggest-takeaways-from-gm-meetings-to-kick-off-2024-25-mlb-free-agency
0 Comments
0
