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Designated hitter Kendrys Morales is one of the top sluggers available in free agency this offseason, and he should garner plenty of interest around baseball.

Continue for updates.

Yankees Showing Interest in Morales

Tuesday, Nov. 8

The New York Yankees have reportedly “inquired” about free-agent slugger Kendrys Morales, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post. 

The Yankees’ interest appears to be “As a hedge in case they are able to trade Brian McCann,” per Sherman, as McCann serves as the team’s backup catcher and designated hitter.

Sherman added:

McCann is owed $18 million in each of the next two seasons, and the Yankees would not want to essentially duplicate that contract with Morales. Also, with Gary Sanchez as the starting catcher, McCann is now the primary DH, and the Yankees would not want to have approximately $35 million (plus luxury tax) invested in a backup catcher (McCann) and DH (Morales).

Morales, 33, would be an upgrade for the Yankees. In the past two seasons with the Royals, he’s bashed 52 home runs and 199 RBI in 312 games. McCann, 32, certainly hasn’t been poor for the Yankees in his three seasons with the club, hitting at least 20 homers each season.

But he managed just 58 RBI in 130 games in 2016, and he has exceeded 80 RBI just once in his past seven seasons (he had 94 RBI in 2015). While McCann does have added value as a backup catcher in a pinch, Morales is capable of playing first base, if needed.

And the Yankees could use another consistent source of run production. While the team did have at least nine players with 40 or more runs knocked in, the team leaders were Starlin Castro and Didi Gregorius with 70 apiece. The Yankees were 22nd in baseball with 680 runs scored and tied for 23rd in RBI with 647.

The Yankees will likely have competition for Morales’ services, however. Sherman reported that both the Boston Red Sox and the Toronto Blue Jays were also interested in the slugger.

You can follow Timothy Rapp on Twitter.

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Free agency won’t be quite as intriguing as in years past, but quite a few huge names are set to hit the market.

Below, we’ll break down some of the latest rumors or buzz surrounding a few of those players and offer predictions for where they might end up in 2017.

Yoenis Cespedes

Let the bidding begin.

Yoenis Cespedes exercised the opt-out clause in his contract with the New York Mets over the weekend, per James Wagner of the New York Times, passing up $47.5 million over the next two seasons in the pursuit of greener pastures in free agency. 

The move hardly comes as a surprise. He’ll be the top outfielder on the market and could be looking at a deal that will total over $100 million. Despite being 31, Cespedes has hit 30 or more home runs in each of the past two seasons and has consistently hit for power since joining MLB in 2012. 

The Mets extended a $17.2 million qualifying offer to Cespedes, per Adam Rubin of ESPN, but of course he’ll decline it. Still, Cespedes has thrived in New York, and even told reporters in August he wanted to finish his career with the team.

So it still seems like a very strong possibility—maybe the most likely possibility—that the Mets will offer him a big contract and Cespedes will return. It makes sense from New York’s standpoint, as the team still has the players in place to make a run at a World Series title.

Prediction: Cespedes re-signs with the Mets.

Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Bautista

According to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe, “There have been discussions that the [Toronto Blue Jays’] ownership prefers to keep [Edwin] Encarnacion and would let [Jose] Bautista go unless he accepts a qualifying offer, which he is unlikely to do.”

In other words, Bautista is all but gone. If the Blue Jays can make a competitive offer on Encarnacion, however—which they’d be crazy not to do, given the talent they already have on the roster—he may just return.

Bautista would make a lot of sense for the Boston Red Sox, as Cafardo noted. Playing left field in Fenway Park isn’t exactly a strenuous task, Bautista has hit well in the park in his career and, per Cafardo, Bautista is “a fan of manager John Farrell and third base coach Brian Butterfield from their time together in Toronto. The feeling is mutual.”

Bautista could either play left field or fill in as the designated hitter to replace David Ortiz, and while he won’t come cheap, he’s unlikely to get Cespedes or Encarnacion money. 

Prediction: Encarnacion re-signs with the Blue Jays; Bautista signs with Red Sox.

Yankees Pursuing a Closer

The two top closers on the market, Aroldis Chapman and Kenley Jansen, will generate plenty of interest and ultimately even more money. So, where will they end up?

According to Cafardo, “There’s a sentiment that Aroldis Chapman could return as [the Yankees] closer.”

And Ken Davidoff of the New York Post reported:

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman, having arrived at the General Managers Meetings, said he already has reached out to the representatives of free-agent closer Aroldis Chapman as well as reps for “other relievers.”

It’s clear the Yankees are targeting a top reliever, and Cashman’s admission of considering “other relievers” would seem to indicate the team will pursue Kenley Jansen and Mark Melancon in addition to Chapman.

The Yankees also had two members of their organization watching former Royals closer Greg Holland’s showcase on Monday. Holland is returning from Tommy John surgery.

So the Yankees will be very, very busy pursuing a closer in free agency. Will they land a big name?

Maybe, but Chapman just won a World Series in Chicago, and the Cubs are built to win several titles over the next few seasons. Keeping Chapman around—even at astronomical prices—makes sense for the team.

And signing Jansen will cost any team a first-round pick as well, and the Dodgers may prioritize signing Jansen despite having a number of key players—don’t forget about Justin Turner and Rich Hill—hitting the market. The Dodgers are also built to compete in the short term, so keeping Jansen would make sense, even at a large contract.

But hey, it’s the offseason of the closer. So if the Yankees are determined to get a game-changer, there will still be one out there: Mark Melancon.

Prediction: Yankees sign Melancon; Chapman re-signs in Chicago; Jansen re-signs in Los Angeles.

Carlos Gomez

Jon Heyman of Today’s Knuckleball reported that Carlos Gomez will be a long-term commitment in free agency:

Free agent outfielder Carlos Gomez will be seeking a long multiyear deal—perhaps even five years—on the free-agent market despite an uncharacteristically rocky 2016 season. 

Gomez’s agent Scott Boras declined to discuss specifics, but others suggested he will seek a very long deal. 

“You just don’t find this kind of player on the market,” Boras said.

Gomez, 30, struggled throughout much of 2016, hitting just .210 with five home runs and 29 RBI in 85 games with the Houston Astros. But after joining the Texas Rangers, he turned things around, hitting .284 with eight homers and 24 RBI in 33 games down the stretch.

At his best, Gomez is an excellent combination of pop and speed. Between the 2012-14 seasons with the Milwaukee Brewers, he hit at least 19 home runs and stole at least 34 bases in three straight campaigns. His inconsistency is a concern, however, and he may find it difficult to find five-year deals on the market. 

Nonetheless, the Rangers feel like a good fit. If the team decides against going after other big-name free agents—or can’t land any—bringing Gomez back would make sense.

Prediction: Gomez re-signs with Rangers.

You can follow Timothy Rapp on Twitter.

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Cleveland picked up its $12 million club option on slugger Carlos Santana on Friday after its crushing defeat in Game 7 of the World Series at the hands of the Chicago Cubs, the team announced. 

Jon Heyman of Today’s Knuckleball first reported the news on Thursday. 

Santana, 30, had another fantastic season for Cleveland in 2016, hitting .259 with 34 home runs, 87 RBI and a .865 OPS—the fourth time in the past six seasons he’s hit at least 20 homers and his sixth straight season with at least 74 RBI.

The switch-hitting Santana was certainly more effective from the left side of the plate, where he hit 30 home runs and knocked in 68 RBI.

He also helped form the core of Cleveland’s dangerous lineup that reached the World Series this season, combining with Francisco Lindor, Jason Kipnis, Mike Napoli and Jose Ramirez to give the Tribe a dangerous collection of boppers.

Keeping those players together—along with ace Corey Kluber and bullpen extraordinaire Andrew Miller—makes Cleveland a threat to reach the postseason again in 2017. And indeed, if Santana continues to hit for power, the Tribe will be tough to unseat in the AL Central.

You can follow Timothy Rapp on Twitter.

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The Philadelphia Phillies announced Thursday that they have declined to pick up the mutual option on pitcher Charlie Morton. 

Morton was set to earn a $9.5 million salary in 2017, but the Phillies instead exercised a $1 million buyout, per SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo. 

Morton, 32, made just four starts in 2016, finishing 1-1 with a 4.15 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 19 strikeouts in 17.1 innings pitched. He missed the majority of the season after tearing his hamstring in April. 

A major reason for the buyout was likely because it wouldn’t have been guaranteed that Morton would have made the starting rotation given the team’s bevy of young starters and prospects. Jerad Eickhoff, Aaron Nola and Vince Velasquez are locks to earn spots on the rotation, while Zach Eflin, Jake Thompson, Alec Asher and perhaps even Mark Appel will compete for spots in the rotation.

In other words, Morton would have needed to have a very strong spring to earn a spot in the rotation this season. Given that Morton has pitched 150 or more innings just three times in his career and has dipped below a 3.70 ERA just once, the Phillies weren’t willing to bet on his justifying a $9.5 million contract on the mound.

You can follow Timothy Rapp on Twitter.

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The Minnesota Twins hired Thad Levine as their senior vice president and general manager Thursday:

Levine, 44, will work under chief baseball officer Derek Falvey, who was appointed several weeks ago.

“I am inspired to work for the Twins franchise, known as being one of the best organizations in all of professional sports due to the stalwart leadership of the Pohlad family, commitment of its local workforce, talent of its players and unflagging loyalty of its fans,” Levine told the club’s website. 

Levine had been the assistant general manager for the Texas Rangers since 2005 and took over the reins of the international scouting program in recent years. Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News broke down Levine’s impact with his former organization:

Levine has been a trusted voice for [Rangers general manager Jon] Daniels. While the baseball world seems to spin around “scouting” and “analytics” stars, Levine has a blended background, but his real strength is in understanding interpersonal dynamics. He has been a key in bringing the Rangers management staff closer together following the rift that saw Nolan Ryan leave, followed a year later by the exodus of A.J. Preller to San Diego.

Levine will be tasked with helping to turn around a Twins team that has had just one winning season in the past six years and hasn’t reached the postseason since 2010.

The Twins do have talent on the roster, however, led by Brian Dozier, Miguel Sano and Byron Buxton. They also have a number of talent prospects in the farm system, namely pitchers Tyler Jay, Kohl Stewart and Stephen Gonsalves and shortstop Nick Gordon.

You can follow Timothy Rapp on Twitter.

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Two franchises trying to break two impossibly long championship droughts will duke it out in Game 7 of the World Series on Wednesday night, and not surprisingly, that’s where much of the attention is being placed in baseball circles right now.

But alas, the rumor mill never stops churning. So below, we’ll break down the latest trade buzz making the rounds, while the Chicago Cubs get ready to battle Cleveland with anxious fans in both cities anticipating the matchup.

Where Will Derek Holland End Up?

Derek Holland’s days in Texas are numbered.

According to T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com: “The Rangers are not planning to pick up Holland‘s $11 million option, and a trade could be a possibility, Major League sources said Monday. Holland has been informed of the Rangers’ intention not to pick up his option.”

And Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports added that “Texas is already discussing a possible deal with multiple teams, according to a source.”

Holland, 30, had a poor season for the Rangers in 2016. He finished 7-9 in 20 starts with a 4.95 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 67 strikeouts in 107.1 innings pitched. Holland has started just 35 games for the Rangers over the past three years, as injuries have limited his availability. 

Nonetheless, there is never a shortage of need around baseball when it comes to left-handed starters. Holland, when healthy, is a serviceable innings-eater and a nice option to trot out at the back end of a starting rotation.

If Holland leaves, the Rangers will have an opening for their fifth starting spot. Cole Hamels and Yu Darvish are entrenched atop the rotation, and Martin Perez and A.J. Griffin likely will earn starting spots.

Players with Club Options on the Move?

According to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports, several veterans with club options also could exchange uniforms this offseason:

As per Carlos Ruiz, Heyman wrote: “A few teams are showing interest in Ruiz. The Los Angeles Dodgers could be ready to give the backup job to Austin Barnes, but they could still pick up Ruiz’s $4.5 million option, and think about trading him. Ruiz is popular as he’s great in the clubhouse, a good game caller and can still swing the bat.”

Ruiz, 37, hit .264 with three home runs and 15 RBI in stints with the Philadelphia Phillies and Dodgers in 2016. His best days are behind him, but Ruiz remains an excellent option for teams looking to add a veteran backup at catcher. 

Pat Neshek should garner some interest around baseball. The 36-year-old reliever had a decent season for the Houston Astros. He had a 2-2 record with a 3.06 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, 43 strikeouts and 18 holds in 60 appearances. Right-handed batters hit just .172 against him, however, making him a viable option when playing matchups in the bullpen. 

Much of the action this offseason will revolve around top-notch closers. Landing a bridge reliever such as Neshek would be a sneaky move for teams more confident in their setup men and closers, however.

Fernando Rodney, meanwhile, continues to be an option in the later innings, even at 39. He saved 25 games between the San Diego Padres and Miami Marlins in 2016, with a 3.44 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, 74 strikeouts and eight holds.

Rodney struggled in Miami, however, blowing three saves in 11 opportunities. He was perfect in 17 attempts in San Diego but watched his 0.31 ERA in San Diego balloon to 5.89 in Miami. Teams interested in Rodney will have to believe he can still be the pitcher he was in San Diego and will put his Miami struggles behind him.

That’s hardly a guarantee, but for teams looking to add late-innings depth on the cheap, it’s a risk potentially worth taking. 

You can follow Timothy Rapp on Twitter.

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There is more baseball to be played.

That was hardly a guarantee on Sunday night, with Cleveland leading the World Series 3-1. But the Chicago Cubs fought back, earning a 3-2 win at Wrigley Field to send the Fall Classic back to Cleveland. 

You can also stream the game on Fox Sports Go.

Now, the Cubs find themselves still needing to win two more games, on the road, to end their famous World Series drought. Cleveland, meanwhile, is one win away from ending a World Series drought of its own.

So what are the key storylines for Game 6? And what are the teams saying in advance of the showdown?

One major factor for the Cubs will be the return of slugger Kyle Schwarber, who will be the team’s designated hitter.

“He’s back, and I’m sure he’s champing at the bit to get in the lineup,” first baseman Anthony Rizzo told Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune. “He’s going to have big at-bats Tuesday, and he’s going to be ready for it. And he’s got all of our confidence behind him.”

Schwarber has hit .375 with two walks, two RBI and a run in three total appearances during the Fall Classic. Adding him back to the middle of the lineup gives the Cubs a major offensive boost.

Of course, the player who will be most important for Chicago on Tuesday is starter Jake Arrieta, who—unlike his counterpart, Cleveland starter Josh Tomlin—will be pitching on full rest. And Arrieta certainly isn’t lacking for confidence heading into his start.

“I get to go Tuesday and Kyle (Hendricks) will finish it off for us,” Arrieta told Paul Skrbina of the Chicago Tribune. “We like the way it lines up. We obviously have to get through (Sunday) before we can start thinking about anything else.”

Tomlin might have other ideas. Cleveland’s pitcher has been excellent this offseason, going 2-0 in three starts with a 1.76 ERA, 0.85 WHIP and 11 strikeouts in 15.1 innings pitched. Certainly, Arrieta hasn’t matched those numbers (1-1 in three starts with a 3.78 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 16 strikeouts in 16.2 innings).

Cleveland also has a rested back end of the bullpen, where Bryan Shaw, Andrew Miller and Cody Allen have been so dominant. Miller has been ridiculous this postseason, giving up just one run in 17 innings while striking out 29 batters.

What makes him such a unique weapon is that he can be utilized at any point in the game, his willingness to do so and his ability to pitch multiple innings for Cleveland.

“He just wants to pitch when the game is on the line, in high-leverage situations,” Miller’s pitching coach, Jason Bere, told Sullivan. “He wouldn’t be able to do what he does if we didn’t have the other guys we have. Right now it’s working.”

For the Cubs, the recipe for success is simple: Don’t carry a deficit into the late innings. If Cleveland gets into the back end of its bullpen with a lead late in a game, the odds are high that it’ll win. In their two wins in this series, the Cubs didn’t trail late. In their three losses, they did. 

Of course, that means sluggers such as Rizzo, Kris Bryant, Ben Zobrist, Javier Baez and Addison Russell need to get on track. The Cubs have hit just .210 in this World Series, have scored 10 runs in five games and have been shut out twice. 

Few lineups have more depth or talent, but as the old cliche goes, good pitching beats good hitting. And Cleveland’s pitching has been superb.

If the Cubs don’t pitch just as well—and perhaps get more Herculean performances from Aroldis Chapman, who earned the rare 2.2-inning save on Sunday night while throwing shadows past Cleveland’s hitters—or if the bats don’t awaken in a big way, Cleveland will be celebrating another title this year, this time at Progressive Field.

“We’re in a good position, still,” Cleveland first baseman Mike Napoli told David Waldstein of the New York Times. “We’re up, three to two, heading home. We did what we had to do here. We put ourselves in a position to win it in a crazy atmosphere. We’re happy what we did here, and now we’re going home to play in front of our fans.”

Cleveland will be hoping for just one win in front of those fans. The Cubs will be hoping to break their hearts, ending 108 years of suffering in the process.

You can follow Timothy Rapp on Twitter.

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To Cleveland we go.

The Chicago Cubs kept their title hopes alive on Sunday night, beating Cleveland 3-2, winning their first World Series game at Wrigley Field since 1945 and sending the Fall Classic back to Progressive Field for Games 6 and 7. Cleveland holds a 3-2 advantage.

Not surprisingly, much of the conversation following Game 5 surrounded Cubs closer Aroldis Chapman, who came into the game in the seventh inning and promptly pitched 2.2 shutout innings. It was a unique performance, as Al Leiter said on the MLB Network:

Special indeed.

His 42 pitches were four shy of his career-high for a one-game appearance, per Bob Klapisch of USA Today, and his performance is why this series is heading back to Chicago, as Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News noted:

It was a gutsy decision by Cubs manager Joe Maddon but one he was prepared to make before the game, according to Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times:

Maddon knew Chapman represented his best chance late in Game 5. His counterpart knew it, too.

“Nobody’s ever running to the bat rack when Chapman’s coming into the game,” Cleveland manager Terry Francona acknowledged to Buster Olney of ESPN.

Still, the Cubs have a major task ahead of them.

They still have to face Josh Tomlin and Corey Kluber, although both starters will be on short rest. Thus far in this series, the Cubs have scored all of two runs in 16.2 innings against that pair, losing all three of those games. Additionally, Andrew Miller and Cody Allen loom in the bullpen if Cleveland is able to take a lead into the later innings.

That’s one reason why Mike Golic of Mike & Mike doesn’t believe the Cubs will be able to pull off the comeback:

Dave Zirin of the Nation doesn’t care. He’s just happy to have more baseball:

Nonetheless, it’s an interesting question to ponder whether the Cubs can complete their comeback, on the road, against two pitchers who have been excellent in the postseason. And there are a few reasons to believe they have a chance.

For one, they can reinsert Kyle Schwarber to the lineup as the designated hitter. He wasn’t cleared to play in the field, so he hasn’t been able to start the team’s last three games. But he’s arguably been the Cubs’ best hitter in the World Series, hitting .375 with two walks, two RBI and a run.

Additionally, starting pitchers Jake Arrieta and Kyle Hendricks will be available for Game 6 and Game 7 (if necessary) on full rest, unlike Cleveland’s starters. And outside of Chapman, the Cubs bullpen will be completely rested on Tuesday night. 

Of course, it remains to be seen if Chapman will be available. Miller and Allen most certainly will be for Cleveland.

Finally, consider that the Cubs were tied with the Boston Red Sox for the best road record this season (46-35) and have gone a respectable 4-3 on the road in the postseason. Chicago is no pushover away from home. 

So, no, it isn’t impossible to imagine a scenario where the Cubs come all the way back from a 3-1 series deficit. And that perhaps should make Cleveland fans who mocked the Golden State Warriors for blowing a 3-1 NBA Finals advantage to the Cavaliers a tiny bit nervous, as Sam Amick of USA Today noted:

“It ain’t over till it’s over,” Yogi Berra famously mused, originally about the 1973 National League pennant race. Now, it’s a sentiment that the Cubs are holding on to for dear life. 

You can follow Timothy Rapp on Twitter.

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The Loveable Losers can’t afford to lose again.

Cleveland took a 3-1 lead in the World Series on Saturday night, leaving the Chicago Cubs on the brink of adding another season to a title drought dating back to 1908.

In the process, Cleveland now has registered as many wins at Wrigley Field during the World Series (two) as the Cubs have in their entire history, per ESPN Stats & Information.  

Cleveland’s first chance to end the series will be Game 5 on Sunday.

You can also stream the game on Fox Sports Go.

Certainly, the Cubs will be pleased to be done with Corey Kluber for the time being. He’s now held the Cubs to a lone run in 12.0 innings pitched this World Series, with 15 strikeouts, nine hits allowed and one walk. 

Andrew Miller has also played a huge role in all three of Cleveland’s wins, pitching a total of 5.1 innings and allowing one run on three hits, two walks and eight strikeouts. The combination of Kluber and Miller stifled the Cubs once again in Game 4, leaving a dim light at the end of the tunnel for the Cubbies.

After all, the Indians will call on Miller at some point again if the Cubs can prolong this Series. And Kluber will loom in Game 7 if Chicago makes it that far. 

But the Cubs can take some solace in the fact they actually managed to score against both Kluber and Miller in Game 4. Or that they can turn to Jon Lester in Game 5 and potentially Jake Arrieta in Game 6 and Kyle Hendricks in Game 7.

Still, Lester knows his work is cut out for him.

“You have a lot of contact in that lineup. So that puts pressure on your defense when you’re able to do that,” he said per ESPN.com. “When you don’t strike out a lot, that puts pressure on your defense and makes you continually execute pitches. And I think that’s where they wear the starting pitcher down and get to that bullpen early.”

So what are the keys to the game for the Cubs as they hope to stay alive?

• A strong performance from Lester
• An early lead

“So the big thing again is to grab the lead somehow,” manager Joe Maddon noted, per the ESPN.com report. “Grab the lead, hold onto the lead. You don’t want to try to fight from behind on these guys because that trilogy (relievers Miller, Bryan Shaw and closer Cody Allen) and they’re throwing out there is pretty good.”

Indeed, Cleveland’s formula for success has been to score early, rely on the bullpen and make defensive moves to limit the chances of allowing any runs late in the game. It’s a tactic that Terry Francona has orchestrated to near perfection this offseason and one the Cubs can’t allow him to utilize in Game 5.

But the Cubs also need their bats to wake up. In their three losses in this World Series, they’ve scored a total of two runs. In their one win, they put five on the board. 

Kris Bryant is 1-for-14. Addison Russell and Javier Baez have just two hits apiece. The team can’t call on its best hitter in the Series, Kyle Schwarber, who hasn’t been cleared to play in the field.

The Cubs have the depth and talent to swing their way back into this series, especially against Trevor Bauer and Josh Tomlin. It will be key in Game 5 that the Cubs get to Bauer early. If Cleveland’s starter can give the Indians quality innings and hand the bullpen a lead in the later innings, the Cubs will likely be staring down another loss.

And another season with the curse intact.

You can follow Timothy Rapp on Twitter.

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Jose Fernandez and two of his friends smelled of alcohol after divers pulled them from the wreckage following their fatal boat crash in September, a search warrant affidavit revealed, according to Julie K. Brown of the Miami Herald. 

Brown noted: “The toxicology tests for the young men are complete but have not been released by state investigators, citing an exemption in the public records law for open criminal investigations. Nor have the autopsies been released.”

The affidavit also indicated that the driver of the boat was going at a fast speed and operating the vessel with “recklessness” that was “exacerbated by the consumption of alcohol,” per Brown.

Per the affidavit, one of the men involved in the crash had a receipt from the American Social Bar & Kitchen, a waterfront bar in Brickell. Fernandez and the two friends arrived there at 12:55 a.m., according to Brown’s report.

Fernandez and his two friends, Emilio Jesus Macias and Eduardo Rivero, died in the early morning of Sept. 25 when the pitcher’s boat, “Kaught Looking,” ran into the rocks of the Government Cut north jetty. 

It is unknown whether Fernandez was the driver of the boat; however, according to Brown, most of Fernandez’s acquaintances believe he was driving “since he had just met Macias and Rivero’s friends say he had little boating experience.”

Fernandez spent the entirety of his MLB career with the Miami Marlins and was considered one of the best young pitchers in baseball.

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