The shutdown imposed by the owner of Major League Baseball officially ended ThursdayOn its ninety-ninth day. Players will soon report back to the camps to prepare for Opening Day, Now scheduled for April 7. In the meantime, a lot of work has to be completed in the free agent and trading markets. To keep you posted, we’ll be tracking all of the day’s biggest moves and rumors below.
Cubs candidates for the landing of Korea?
The Cubs may be the candidates for the signature Carlos Correa, according to an MLB.com report. Korea, the largest free agent in the market, is also expected to hear from the Yankees and Astros before making a decision. You can read more about his free agency and address him by clicking here.
As noted by CBS Sports on ThursdayAnd the Athletics first base man Matt Olson Numbers to be one of, if not the top commercial target for many contenders. That list will include every Yankee team (Per Eric Boland) and the Rangers (Evan Grant), who, as you might remember, capped the first half of season one by signing both shortstops Cory Seeger And the second rule Marcus Simin.
Olson, turning 28, in late March, has two seasons left of the team’s control. Last year, he fought the .271/.371/.540 (153 .) OPS +) with 39 home runs. Olson significantly reduced the strike rate along the way, cutting it from 31.4 percent to 16.8 percent. This improvement, if sustained, could indicate that he had achieved a new true talent level.
No wonder then that the Yankees and Rangers, in all likelihood, brave They line up to add it to the middle of their lineup.
Rangers also to chase Kershaw
Texas may not stop at Olson. According to, again, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News, the Rangers will take on the veteran left Clayton Kershaw.
Kershaw, 36, is from the Dallas area and is rumored to have a craving close to home. Up until this point, he has spent his entire career with Dodgers. Last season, he collected 3.55 ERAs (115 ERA+) and 6.86 walking strike percentages in 121 runs.
Kershaw was ranked 16th best free agent by CBS Sports entering the season:
The word for this writing is availability. It applies to Kershaw’s free agency in two respects. Above all, will he be affected by the elbow injury that kept him out of action? Second, is he serious about leaving the Dodgers, the team that will put his hat on his Hall of Fame board? If Kershaw is good, either on opening day or out of Los Angeles, he must have plenty of suitors. We’ll add that while Kershaw’s ball gets all the attention, it was his passer that served as his home base for the first time last season. This is something that needs to be monitored moving forward.
Rangers signed a different starting marksman prior to closing, and agreed terms with the former Rocky right hand John Gray On a four-year contract worth $56 million.
yankees, Padres Among those who have interest Conforto
Olson isn’t the only bat the Yankees are interested in. Michael Konfortothe 29-year-old who refused mets“The Qualified Show, is also on their radar, According to Mike Puma of the New York Post,. Padres family members are also interested in Conforto, According to Kevin Asey of the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Conforto entered abroad Ranked by CBS Sports as the 23 best free agent options available. This is what we wrote at the time:
There may not be a good time for a player to have a disappointing season, but there is a bad time. Conforto learned that lesson the hard way by hitting .202 / .341 / .298 in the first half year of his walk. Although he rebounded somewhat in the second half (.252/.347/.445), his chances of making money this winter have already evaporated. It turns out that Conforto may disagree with this assessment. He appears to be an obvious candidate to accept the qualifying bid, but a report from last month indicated that he intends to step back and look for something better in the open market. good luck.
Conforto hit 0.22/.344/.384 (101 OPS+) overall with 14 home runs last season.
Mets Davis draws attention
The Mets were busy before closing, signing Max ScherzerAnd the Starling MartAnd the Mark KanhaAnd the Eduardo Escobar. Their next step, however, may involve a trade.
According to Mike Puma of the New York Post,the reserve J.D. Davis Estimate his trading chances as “60-40”. puma notes that CubsAnd the red socksAnd the twinsand athletics are all interested in Davis before closing.
Davis, 28, enjoyed a successful three-year stint with the Mets. He hit .288/.373/.472 (128 OPS+) with 33 hits in 893 games. He has experience in third and first base, as well as on the court, making him an interesting choice for teams that value flexibility.
Davis will not qualify for free agency until after the 2024 season.
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