2021-22 Offseason Thread

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Rosenthal: Labor dispute is about one thing; Freeman’s destination could impact Olson; Verlander mystery; more notes - The Athletic

For Brewers, Renfroe wasn’t only option

Before acquiring Hunter Renfroe from the Red Sox, the Brewers dangled Jackie Bradley Jr. in trades for a variety of other outfielders, including the Blue Jays’ Randal Grichuk, sources said. Unlike the Renfroe deal, in which the Brewers parted with Bradley and two infield prospects, a Grichuk trade would have been one-for-one.

So, why lose the prospects, infielder David Hamilton and Alex Binelas, who ranked 16th and 17th for the Brewers respectively, according to MLBPipeline.com? Because in the Bradley-Renfroe exchange, the Brewers created greater payroll flexibility for 2022, saving about $10 million. The Bradley-Grichuk swap likely would have been a financial wash. And Renfroe was just more appealing overall.

Both Renfroe and Grichuk are entering their age 30 seasons, but Renfroe is coming off the better year (112 OPS-plus to 89), and his contractual status gives the Brewers a measure of added flexibility. Grichuk is locked into $9.3 million salaries in each of the next two seasons, while Renfroe is projected to earn $7.6 million in arbitration in 2022 before becoming eligible for the process a final time in ’23. He potentially would have greater trade value if the Brewers faced a financial crunch, particularly if he and Grichuk were similar to what they were in ’21.

It is not known which other clubs the Brewers spoke with about Bradley, but the Padres’ Wil Myers would have been the same type of play as Grichuk. Myers, too, is entering his age 30 season. He was better in 2021 (113 OPS-plus) than Grichuk. But because he is still owed $21 million in salary and buyout, the teams probably would have split the difference between his money and Bradley’s, leaving the Brewers in the same financial spot.

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MLB Notebook: Thoughts on an action-packed Red Sox week - Boston Sports Journal

• The Renfroe-for-Bradley swap has more than a few people in the game believing that the Sox are intent on landing Japanese outfielder Seiya Suzuki, whose posting process was frozen when the lockout went in effect. The thinking: Suzuki could play right field for the Sox, replacing Renfroe both defensively and as a productive right-handed bat. The Sox could then keep **** Hernandez in center and Alex Verdugo in left. That may well be true, but though one major league source reports the Yankees, Blue Jays and Red Sox have been the most aggressive in pursuit of Suzuki, teams can hardly be certain of the player's attention. The Sox could, after all, be the highest bidders for Suzuki, only to learn that he would rather play on the West Coast, the way Shohei Ohtani did a few years back. Still, Suzuki would fill an obvious need for the Sox, and importantly, not cost them any draft picks. One major league evaluator who has scouted Suzuki extensively for his club remarked to colleagues recently that Suzuki is, indeed, "a difference-maker.''

[Schad]

Minnie Minoso finally elected to the Hall of Fame. Has the weird distinction of getting punished by voters for having a short peak (all of his production came from 1951-1960, where he graded out as the fifth-best position player in baseball by fWAR), while also having a major league career that spanned 31 years.

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Sources: Cuban C Maikel Miñoso (16) agrees with Toronto Blue Jays and will sign shortly when the period of international signatures begins.

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[Parataxis]

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Posting fees just go from the MLB to Japan, and never the other way, right?

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[Parataxis]

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We need to act fast before the Mets poach Walker.

Probably best to promote him to Manager ASAP to avoid any risk of him leaving. (Solves another problem too)

[Scott Hall]

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It's not going to happen. Move on, people.

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How the Rangers, Mets, Blue Jays and Mariners combined for the wildest day in MLB free-agency history - ESPN.com

WITH SEMIEN DONE and Scherzer on the verge, Scott Boras spent the early hours of Nov. 29 trying to push the ninth $300 million-plus contract in baseball history across the finish line. He had sequestered himself in his home office for days, plowing through bags of Halls menthol lozenges and subsisting on soup sent via dumbwaiter. Corey Seager, the 27-year-old shortstop with the gorgeous left-handed swing, was going to sign Monday, and it was Boras' job to line up the best deal.

The Rangers were willing to go 10 years and $325 million, a number that reflected the organization's need to pay top dollar to persuade players like Semien and Seager to join despite the fact that the expectations of winning in 2022 were slim. That figure was unlikely to be beat. As reverent as they are of Seager's bat, the Dodgers have sent him to the IL too many times to commit to that high of a yearly salary for a decade. The Blue Jays were the mystery entrant in the Seager sweepstakes, but they too were unwilling to match Texas' mega-offer.

The fit made enough sense. Chris Woodward, the Rangers' manager, knew Seager well, having been a coach with the Dodgers. The Rangers' attendance at Globe Life Field last season exceeded 2.1 million, the highest in the AL, and recent payroll cuts left them ready to spend. And it wasn't like Texas had been woebegone forever: The Rangers reached back-to-back World Series in 2010 and 2011 and won consecutive AL West titles in 2015 and 2016.

Around 4 p.m., nearly the same time as Semien had agreed the day before, it was official: Corey Seager was joining him and becoming a Texas Ranger. For Texas, it was a coup. It had guaranteed a half-billion dollars, sure, but in the process gifted itself the best middle infield in baseball. The conversations in Suite 6048 had ushered in the beginning of a new era in Rangers baseball, one that can best be summed up like this: Texas guaranteed Corey Seager $325 million -- more than the 10 playoff teams from 2021 spent on free agents before the lockout ($318.15 million).

Including Seager, the 24 hours ended with seven players -- Semien, Avisail Garcia, Gausman, Gray, Scherzer and Ray joined him -- landing a combined $964 million. It wasn't over, either. Free agency kept going all the way to the cusp of the lockout, adding to the staggering total spent -- and landing one more nine-figure deal that exceeded expectations.

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Blue Jays Nearly Signed Noah Syndergaard - Sports Illustrated

The Toronto Blue Jays nearly brought Noah Syndergaard back to where it all began.

The 29-year-old right-hander was reportedly "really close" to signing with the Blue Jays prior to inking a one-year, $21 million deal with the Los Angeles Angels, ESPN's Jeff Passan told Sportsnet's Tim & Friends.

Syndergaard started his career with Toronto, the 28th pick in the 2010 MLB Draft. He quickly rose up the ranks to a top 100 prospect before the Blue Jays flipped him to the New York Mets in 2012 as the centerpiece of the trade for R.A. Dickey.

Toronto battle for Syndergaard this winter with the Angels reportedly came down right to the end. Whoever bumped their offer by $1 million first was going to land the former All-Star, Passan said.

"The Angels did it and Syndergaard went there. But Syndergaard came away from his meeting with the Blue Jays really impressed," Passan added.

The sense throughout baseball is the Blue Jays are a desirable team to play for, Passan said. It wasn't just Kevin Gausman and Syndergaard who came away impressed by Toronto, former Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Corey Seager also nearly signed with the Blue Jays, per ESPN.

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[Parataxis]

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How does Freeman to Toronto make sense, even? We've got a pretty decent 1B already, and I don't think we particularly need to upgrade the DH spot, especially with how we use it for rest days.

Can Freddie play other positions?

[Aimless Outlook]

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How does Freeman to Toronto make sense, even? We've got a pretty decent 1B already, and I don't think we particularly need to upgrade the DH spot, especially with how we use it for rest days.

Can Freddie play other positions?

Maybe there's internal talk of moving Vladdy back to 3rd now that he's figured out some of his conditioning issues? That's the only thing that would make sense in my head...

[ItsDanger]

Freeman has played 3B before but I don't recall how good he was there. I like Vladdy at 1B. Seager would have made more sense but not at that price. Or switch Vladdy back to 3B?