With just 11 days until MLB’s first official spring training workout, a number of this off-season’s top free agents remain unsigned.
Cody Bellinger, Matt Chapman and Blake Snell are atop the market, and don’t appear to be close to signing anytime soon. While their negotiations may develop after teams arrive at camp in February, one group of players that seems primed to come off the board sooner rather than later is the surplus of free-agent designated hitters that are still available.
Rhys Hoskins and Joc Pederson both found new homes last week, signing with the Milwaukee Brewers and Arizona Diamondbacks, respectively. But free agents Jorge Soler, J.D. Martinez, Justin Turner, Joey Votto and Brandon Belt are all potential options for teams looking to enhance their lineups.
Of course, the Toronto Blue Jays are one of the teams rumoured to be canvassing the market for a middle-of-the-order bat, and according to ESPN‘s Buster Olney the team “went hard” for Pederson before he signed in Arizona.
Olney also reported Monday that the Blue Jays have once again “worked to add a left-handed hitter” and said they “desperately need lefties to balance their lineup.”
As currently constructed, the only lefty hitters on Toronto’s 40-man roster are Daulton Varsho, Kevin Kiermaier, Cavan Biggio, Spencer Horwitz, Nathan Lukes and Addison Barger.
While a Pederson deal would have made sense to fill that need in Toronto, their search for offence hasn’t been solely focused on hitters that dig into the left-handed batter’s box.
Just before the new year, Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith reported that the Blue Jays had “shown some interest in a wide range of DH candidates,” including most of the names listed above. Olney also listed Soler as a fit in Toronto, adding that the former World Series MVP is looking for a multi-year deal.
The Blue Jays aren’t the only team still looking to make a splash before Opening Day, and as players begin to make their way to Florida or Arizona for spring training in the coming weeks, the free-agent market could start to pick up. So let’s check in on some of the latest rumours from around MLB.
Angels’ 1B/DH search includes Joey Votto
One of the teams in the designated hitter mix, according to Olney is the Los Angeles Angels.
In his article Monday, he said, “the Angels need to cover some of the production lost with (Shohei) Ohtani’s departure and are looking at various DH/first-base options, such as Votto.”
The AL Los Angeles club has quietly been one of the more active teams this winter, re-shaping its bullpen with the additions of Robert Stephenson, Matt Moore, Luis Garcia and Adam Cimber.
The Angels also reportedly agreed to a one-year deal with outfielder Aaron Hicks Monday.
Votto, 40, is coming off two straight seasons where he was limited by injury, only managing a .202/.314/.433 slash line in 2023 after undergoing shoulder surgery in August 2022.
The Canadian and 2010 NL MVP was also connected to the Angels on Wednesday by The New York Post’s Jon Heyman, but he added, “is (Votto) willing to go out there? Could he just be waiting around for hometown Toronto, who’s in the mix for Soler and several others?”
Rangers have had internal conversations about Brandon Belt
After losing Mitch Garver to the Seattle Mariners, the reigning World Series champion Texas Rangers are another team with a hole in the designated hitter spot.
According to Olney, one of the players the team has looked at is former Blue Jay Brandon Belt. He reported that “the Rangers have had internal conversations about Belt, who played for Texas manager Bruce Bochy in San Francisco.”
Belt posted an .858 OPS over 404 plate appearances for Toronto in 2023, including an .890 mark against right-handed pitchers.
The 35-year-old is also a Texas native and played collegiately at the University of Texas, so there might not be a more seamless fit for the two-time World Series champion than with the Rangers.
Olney added that “the question hovering over the Rangers all winter has been how much cash general manager Chris Young has available” and that “rival execs have wondered if Texas will eventually be reunited with free-agent starting pitcher Jordan Montgomery.”
So while it remains to be seen which direction the Rangers will take to wrap up their off-season before starting their title defence, Young spoke on adding to the offence at the team’s Fan Fest last week.
According to MLB.com’s Kennedi Landry, he said that “their philosophy is going to be to keep the DH spot open” and added that “they would like more of a rotation there, especially getting guys like Corey Seager and Adolis García semi-off days at DH.”
Reunion with Adam Duvall a potential option for Red Sox
As the Boston Red Sox look to add right-handed depth to their lineup, a reunion with outfielder Adam Duvall is a potential option, according to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo.
Duvall joined the Red Sox on a one-year contract last off-season, and proceeded to hit 21 home runs with an .834 OPS over 92 games with Boston. He missed a large portion of the season after fracturing his wrist in April.
The Red Sox have a left-handed-heavy lineup, and while Duvall’s splits favoured same-handed matchups in 2023, he owns a career OPS above .760 against righties and lefties.
Cotillo mentioned free agent Garrett Cooper as a potential fallback option for Boston. Cooper posted a .904 OPS against lefties in 2023, and has always hit southpaws well, with a career .813 mark.
Mariners showing interest in Dylan Cease
Despite featuring one of the top young rotations in baseball, the Seattle Mariners “have quietly entered trade talks with the Chicago White Sox for ace Dylan Cease,” according to USA Today‘s Bob Nightengale.
Cease, 28 with two more years of team control, has been one of the top players reportedly available on the trade market this off-season. However, with the White Sox asking for “the sun and the moon” in return, according to Heyman, a deal has yet to materialize.
Nightengale reported that the Mariners trade package in a potential deal would centre around young pitchers Bryce Miller and Bryan Woo, who both made their MLB debuts in 2023.
Miller, 25, posted a 4.32 ERA over 131.1 innings for Seattle last season, and Woo, who turns 24 on Jan. 30, finished his rookie campaign with a 4.21 ERA in 87.2 innings.
Cease is just a year removed from a Cy Young runner-up season, where he posted a 2.20 ERA with 227 strikeouts in 184 innings with the White Sox.
However, he struggled to prevent runs in 2023, with his ERA jumping to 4.58. But the right-hander seems poised for a bounceback, with FanGraphs’ ZiPS projecting him to strike out over 27 per cent of hitters he faces with a 3.90 ERA in 2024.
“If the White Sox can’t complete a trade with the Mariners, they are expected to open the season with Cease,” Nightengale said.
