Around MLB: 2025 Edition

[polo007]

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A Pete Alonso contract prediction plus more MLB players who could sign short-term deals - The Athletic

Now that first baseman Pete Alonso’s camp has told the New York Mets he is willing to accept a three-year contract with opt-outs, other prominent free agents are contemplating whether to follow suit.

At least two — right-hander Jack Flaherty and outfielder Anthony Santander — are open to considering short-term deals with high average annual values, according to league sources briefed on their discussions.

Spring training camps open in less than a month. A free agent such as Flaherty or Santander probably would not settle for a shorter deal before exhausting other alternatives. But with certain players, a pivot such as the kind made by four Scott Boras clients last offseason eventually might be appealing.

Left-hander Blake Snell turned his opt-out into a lucrative long-term deal. Third baseman Matt Chapman used the threat of an opt-out to do the same. First baseman/outfielder Cody Bellinger and left-hander Jordan Montgomery, on the other hand, stayed on their present contracts.

Flaherty, 29, is the youngest of the 15 domestic starting pitchers on The Athletic’s free-agent Big Board and the only one who is unsigned. His lingering presence on the open market qualifies as something of a surprise. He was ineligible to receive a qualifying offer because he was traded in the middle of the season and thus is not subject to draft-pick compensation.

Teams perhaps want to see Flaherty put together two consecutive seasons of elite performance. He produced a 3.17 ERA for the Detroit Tigers and Los Angeles Dodgers last season, then was inconsistent for the Dodgers in the postseason, following stellar performances in Game 1 of both the National League Championship Series and World Series with subpar showings in the respective Game 5s. Before that, he had a rocky ’23 coming off two straight injury-marred campaigns.

A one-year opt-out would enable Flaherty to re-enter the market at 30 but also would subject him to a qualifying offer for the first time. The early opt-outs are more appealing for the remaining free agents with QOs — Alonso, Santander, right-hander Nick Pivetta and third baseman Alex Bregman. The collective bargaining agreement prohibits a player from receiving qualifying offers twice.

[polo007]

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[Cyrus]

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Wonder what "Stars" we had in attendance during our meeting. Doubt Bo or Vladdy was there.

[Randle McMurphy]

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Wonder what "Stars" we had in attendance during our meeting. Doubt Bo or Vladdy was there.

Pretty sure they wouldn't want Bo there, that guy has been on the way out for two years and would probably trash their player development.

[PushDaRock]

The pitches end up being pretty simple and not much to sell him on given the finalists that are left. If he wants to win immediately and be comfortable, LA can't be beat. He picks the Padres if he wants to play with his idol. We are the pick if he wants to totally carve his own path.

[polo007]

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[Cyrus]

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Sounds like LA freeing up Dollars to Sign the star of International Market, plus i'm sure when they have agreement in place they'll trade for more "international dollars" to ensure Ro gets atleast similar dollars to Paders/Jays offer.

[COY0607]

The pitches end up being pretty simple and not much to sell him on given the finalists that are left. If he wants to win immediately and be comfortable, LA can't be beat. He picks the Padres if he wants to play with his idol. We are the pick if he wants to totally carve his own path.

He could forge his path with the other teams as well, especially with the Padres. Other than the relationships with the FO and a track record of developing SPs, really not sure what the pitch would be for the Jays. There’s really not much else to sell

[PushDaRock]

The pitches end up being pretty simple and not much to sell him on given the finalists that are left. If he wants to win immediately and be comfortable, LA can't be beat. He picks the Padres if he wants to play with his idol. We are the pick if he wants to totally carve his own path.

He could forge his path with the other teams as well, especially with the Padres. Other than the relationships with the FO and a track record of developing SPs, really not sure what the pitch would be for the Jays. There’s really not much else to sell

Not really sure he can do that in LA with Shohei there. The Padres have Darvish and it would be seen as like a student mentor type relationship to ease him into the Majors. If he picks the Jays, it's seen more as him being out on his own and not needing that comfort and familiarity with other Japanese players there.

[polo007]

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[Cyrus]

Dodgers sign another one, Tanner Scott like one of top closer, and ofcourse there is deferrals

[polo007]

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[Hottie McShotty]

Dodgers sign another one, Tanner Scott like one of top closer, and ofcourse there is deferrals

MLB needs to do something about this. This is getting ridiculous!

[polo007]

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[polo007]

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[Raptors Realtor]

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The Dodgers are ridiculous.

[Cyrus]

Guardians signing late inning RP Paul Seward with the Myles Straw money that was freed up thanks to us.

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/01/guardians-sign-paul-sewald.html

Would you rather have Straw / 2 mill Int Bonus or potentially a late inning RP guy

[polo007]

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