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The Oakland Athletics continued their offseason retooling Sunday, agreeing to a three-year, $22 million contract with reliever Ryan Madson. 

ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick and Andy McCulloch of the Kansas City Star reported the deal. Madson, 35, spent the 2015 season with the Kansas City Royals. He went 1-2 with a 2.13 ERA and 0.96 WHIP, combining with Wade Davis and Kelvin Herrera to form the best setup trio in baseball.

The Royals went on to win their first World Series since 1985, thanks in large part to their shutdown bullpen, which posted five wins above replacement overall, per FanGraphs.

Madson’s 2015 season was particularly remarkable, given his tribulations over the previous three years. After spending his first eight seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies, Madson left the club after the 2011 season but never threw another pitch before arriving in Kansas City.

He suffered a torn elbow ligament in 2012 that cost him most of the next two seasons, and he sat out 2014 after failing to receive interest from teams in free agency.

 Madson discussed his comeback with the Associated Press in September (via the Spokesman-Review):

I thought I would bounce right back. I did everything everybody wanted me to do. I did everything under the sun trying to get back, and it took me getting released for the first time in my career, not being in the major leagues since being called up in 2003, to really feel that punch. And it knocked me down. It almost knocked me out.

The A’s will likely look for Madson to return to a setup role with Sean Doolittle getting the first crack at closing. Oakland had one of baseball’s worst bullpens in 2015, finishing 27th in wins above replacement. The team traded closer Tyler Clippard to the New York Mets at the deadline, leaving them with only one regular bullpen option (Fernando Rodriguez) with an ERA below four.

Adding Madson should provide the A’s with some stability as they rebound from a disappointing 68-94 record in 2015. The A’s have already reacquired Jed Lowrie and signed pitcher Rich Hill as they try to find low-cost options that fit within their payroll. Still, Gabe Lacques of USA Today made an interesting observation:

Madson, assuming he stays healthy, is obviously the biggest acquisition so far. Giving him three years is a bit of a risk, but if he performs at the same level he did in 2015, Oakland’s bullpen likely won’t be as much of a glaring weakness.

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All advanced stats via FanGraphs.

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Move over, Jay Z, there is a new musician-turned-sports agent in town. Magnus Media, a company which singer Marc Anthony founded, announced Monday the signing of Cincinnati Reds closer Aroldis Chapman as its first client under the new Magnus Sports umbrella.

According to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports, Magnus Sports will work in conjunction with Praver Shapiro Sports Management to represent athletes. Anthony’s company plans to specifically focus on marketing Latino players. 

“Baseball, like music, is an ingrained cultural passion for many Latinos throughout the world, and there’s no shortage of amazing stars of Hispanic origin,” Anthony said. “Despite that, until now there hasn’t been an enterprise specifically designed to meet their needs. With Magnus Sports, we are changing the existing dynamics and building a new kind of management company that understands the culture and knows how to build big media brands.”

Praver Shapiro already boasts Miami Marlins shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria, Chicago Cubs outfielder Jorge Soler and Reds starter Raisel Iglesias among its Latino clients. The partnership will be similar to the one Roc Nation Sports had with CAA Sports at its inception. Roc Nation and CAA split earlier this year.

Bringing in Chapman, arguably baseball’s best closer, is a strong sign that Magnus Sports means business. The 27-year-old has compiled 145 saves over the past four seasons while emerging as one of the most prolific power arms in the sport. He has a career strikeout rate of 15.4 per nine innings and threw the 62 fastest pitches of the 2015 season.

Due to hit free agency next winter, Chapman will likely come close to or set the record for average annual salary for a closer. Having an elite agency to negotiate his contract and a burgeoning sports marketing firm at his back should ensure he is well taken care of.

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The MLB hot stove is fully engulfed. Trades, free-agent moves and the rumors in between have been running rampant, and things are only going to get crazier as we approach the winter meetings.

Held in Nashville from Dec. 6-10, the winter meetings will see a massive amount of deals get done in short order. While 24/7 communication abilities make talking with fellow general managers easier than ever, the ease of everyone being all in one place remains the most conducive factor in making deals.

Until the important decision-makers actually make the trip to Nashville, however, it’s just a stream of rumors instead. The small rumblings about which players are available will help inform discussions that take place at the winter meetings, so they’re a good look at what to expect. 

With that in mind, here’s a look at the latest rumors around baseball.  

Yankees Willing to Talk Nova Trade

The 2015 season could have gone better for Ivan Nova. Returning from Tommy John surgery that limited him to four starts in 2014, Nova went 6-11 with a 5.07 ERA and 1.40 WHIP. He walked 3.16 batters per nine innings, his worst since 2010, and saw a marked drop-off in strikeout rate.

Things got so bad toward the end of the season that Nova was briefly pulled from the Yankees rotation. This isn’t exactly an ideal time to be putting him out on the trade market.

Yet, it appears that’s exactly what the Yankees are doing. Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported the club is open to trading Nova, provided he returns a young pitcher with years of team control remaining. Nova turns 29 in January and will hit free agency for the first time after the 2016 campaign.

The Yankees remain in cost-control mode, but their logic here is pretty obvious. They don’t necessarily want to pay Nova what he’d command in the open market next year and believe they can get a similarly skilled, cost-controlled player if they float him on the market. Nova is still only two years removed from his brilliant 2013 campaign, and he’s been a two-win player twice in his career, per FanGraphs.

Before needing Tommy John surgery, Nova’s career also appeared to be trending upward. He’d upped his strikeouts per nine to 7.49 and was a legit middle-of-the-rotation stud in 2013. We’ve seen too many Tommy John pitchers need more than a year to recover to think Nova should be written off.

Still, it’s hard to imagine any team giving the Yankees what they’re looking for.

Pedro Alvarez Wants a Trade

The Pittsburgh Pirates are understandably disappointed in the development of Pedro Alvarez. After moving to first base to lessen his defensive responsibility, Alvarez hit .243/.318/.469 with 27 home runs and 77 RBI last season. While an improvement from his downright bad 2013, Alvarez still hasn’t become the consistent masher the Pirates envisioned after his back-to-back 30-homer seasons in 2012 and 2013.

FanGraphs‘ WAR formula credited him with 0.2 wins, which is a 0.2-win improvement over his nonexistent WAR in 2013. The move to first base proved to be a disaster, with Alvarez ranking as far and away the worst defensive player at his position. Jose Abreu was closer to being an average first baseman than he was to matching Alvarez’s poor defensive grades.

The Pirates were rumored to be interested in Korean first baseman Byung-ho Park and have rising prospect Josh Bell sitting in the minors. It’s pretty obvious they do not view Alvarez as their first baseman of the future from an organizational perspective.

Likewise, it appears Alvarez would prefer plying his trade elsewhere. Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reported Alvarez is looking for a “change of scenery,” and the Pirates would be happy to oblige if the right deal was put on the table. This continues a trend from the regular season, during which Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reported the Pirates wanted to “get rid” of Alvarez.

It’s worth noting Alvarez still led this team in home runs, so he brings something to the table. But his defensive issues and upcoming free agency make it more likely than not he’ll wind up elsewhere sooner than later.

Lawrie to Be On Move

A year ago, Brett Lawrie was a centerpiece in the deal that sent Josh Donaldson to Toronto. Now, Donaldson is the American League’s reigning MVP, while the Athletics appear ready to move on from Lawrie.

Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reported Oakland will move either Lawrie or third baseman Danny Valencia this offseason, with the former being far more likely. The move comes after Oakland reacquired Jed Lowrie, who spent the 2015 season with the Houston Astros. 

It’s clear Billy Beane and Co. are prioritizing defense with this move, but the Lawrie-Lowrie switch seems strange on paper. Lawrie is a talented 25-year-old who is coming off career highs in home runs (16) and RBI (60), and was an otherwise good defensive player before falling apart in 2015. Lowrie is 31 and basically who he’s going to be at this point: a perfectly fine, slightly above replacement level option who has had just two truly excellent offensive seasons.

The A’s are adding a player six years older than their current option for what appears to be a lateral move. Lawrie also doesn’t become a free agent until after the 2017 season, the same year Lowrie‘s three-year deal he signed in Houston runs out.

Beane always deserves the benefit of the doubt. There’s obviously something he sees in Lowrie‘s presence that the numbers aren’t showing. But he better hope a team offers a talented young player in exchange for Lawrie to make the deal worth it.

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The Detroit Tigers’ first major move of the offseason is upon us. The Tigers and starter Jordan Zimmermann have reportedly agreed to a contract expected to be for five years and in the range of $110 million, according to Fox Sports’ Jon Morosi and CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman on Sunday.  

Detroit went on to confirm the deal Monday. Heyman noted Tuesday that Zimmermann received a full no-trade clause for three years, which will have a list of 10 teams that he can be traded to. Heyman added the clause was “key” for Zimmerman, who wants to settle down with his family.

On Tuesday, Heyman provided a full financial breakdown of Zimmermann’s deal:

An All-Star two of the past three seasons, Zimmermann went 13-10 with a 3.66 ERA and 1.205 WHIP in 2015. While he was expected to command a long-term deal heading into free agency, Zimmermann remained underrated enough that his deal was never expected to rise to Max Scherzer levels. He spent each of his first seven MLB seasons with the Nationals, emerging as a beloved figure in the nation’s capital.

“It’s difficult putting into words the feelings of appreciation I have for the love and support I’ve felt over the past seven years,” Zimmermann said in a tweet by his agent, Mark Pieper. “The same level of commitment and passion that you fans showed me every game I took the ball is what I placed in every pitch I tossed wearing a Nationals uniform.”

The Tigers were also attracted to Zimmermann’s consistency. Since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2009, he’s bounced back with stellar results. He has made at least 32 starts each of the previous four seasons, coming back a much stronger overall pitcher.

Detroit will hope he can continue that trajectory going forward. After taking four straight American League Central crowns, the Tigers nosedived to last place and a 74-87 record. The pitching staff fell apart without Scherzer, ranking 28th in earned run average, 27th in WHIP and tied for 21st in quality starts. Justin Verlander and David Price, the latter of whom was traded midseason, were the only Tigers starters (min. 20 starts) with ERAs under 4.99.

All of that made Zimmermann an attractive candidate, especially given the club’s desire to get back in the division race.

The Nationals were always unlikely to re-sign Zimmermann because they have a glut of arms and were eventually going to make a difficult decision about one of their stars. Even with a large spending budget, inking long-term deals for Zimmermann, Stephen Strasburg, Gio Gonzalez and Doug Fister seemed infeasible. Zimmermann especially seemed to be a likely target to move when the Nats shocked the baseball world by signing Scherzer to a seven-year deal. 

Allowing Zimmermann to walk frees some long-term cash and allows the Nationals to plot their course going forward. We’ll just have to see if the risk of losing his consistency comes with a reward.

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The Miami Marlins are reportedly considering a trade of a budding star, as the Seattle Mariners are reportedly working to obtain outfielder Marcell Ozuna, per ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick. 

Continue for updates.  

Ozuna Trade Not a Certainty

Wednesday, Nov. 25

Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reported that Ozuna is garnering plenty of interest but that no deal is imminent.

Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reported on Nov. 24 that the Marlins were looking at pitchers Roenis Elias and Nate Karns as part of a deal. 

Ozuna, Loria Relationship a Factor in Trade Talks

Tuesday, Nov. 24

Crasnick noted a strained relationship with owner Jeffrey Loria was a catalyzing factor in Miami’s push to trade Ozuna.

“I’d be surprised if they keep him,” a league executive told Crasnick. “Loria clearly can’t stand the guy and everybody knows it.”

Ozuna’s Demotion, Production Lead to Trade Discussions

The Marlins’ strained relationship with Ozuna stems from a strange midseason decision to send him down to the minors when he was in a slump. Thought of as a temporary move, Ozuna wound up spending more than a month in Triple-A for reasons no one in the organization could figure out.

“This is not what Marlins fans deserve. Fans deserve the best team,” Ozuna’s agent, Scott Boras, told Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. “The integrity of the game deserves the best players playing in the big leagues. And it’s not prudent to provide winning baseball at the major league level when your best talent is being restrained in the minor leagues.”

Ozuna, 25, wound up hitting .259/.308/.383 with 10 home runs and 44 RBI. It was a marked downturn from his breakout 2014 campaign, which saw him go deep 23 times, drive in 85 runs and post 3.7 wins above replacement, per FanGraphs.

Given the persistent rumors about ace pitcher Jose Fernandez, it’s clear some sort of organizational retooling is going to happen. Why that’s beginning with two of the Marlins’ most promising young players is anyone’s guess.   

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In an effort to increase safety for fans at MLB ballparks, Commissioner Rob Manfred said Thursday his office will recommend expanded netting for the 2016 season.  

Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported the news. It’s unclear how much the existing netting will be expanded, but Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported the new guidelines will be in place by January 2016. 

Manfred’s public proclamation comes after a 2015 filled with calls for increases in fan safety. An Oakland Athletics season ticket holder filed a lawsuit in July asking MLB to put netting throughout foul territory to protect against foul balls and flying bats. According to the suit, 1,750 injuries per year by foul balls and broken bats could be prevented with more netting, per the Associated Press (via ESPN.com).

“She fears for her and her husband’s safety and particularly for her daughter,” the lawsuit says of Gail Payne, the woman named as the plaintiff. “She is constantly ducking and weaving to avoid getting hit by foul balls or shattered bats.”

The push drew more attention in August when Gregory Murrey fell to his death from the upper deck of Atlanta’s Turner Field. That led to calls for raising the railings at the edges of upper decks and expanding safety netting to avoid fans falling onto hard concrete. 

“I know it may restrict the viewing a little bit,” San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy said, per Nightengale, “but these new parks are so close to the field, there are times when I can’t seem to get out of the way here, and this is what I do for a living. We should try to do something to cut back on these injuries to the fans.”

Manfred said in October that MLB’s proposal comes after an expansive study, which was aimed at finding a solution that will satisfy fan safety needs while keeping with expected aesthetics.  

“We’ve done a ton of research on the topic,” Manfred said, per Maury Brown of Forbes. “Everything from designs of ballparks to data on exactly where bats and balls go to materials that are available for netting. This new netting is far different from designs in the past. This new netting protects but increases the visibility for the fans.”

If that’s the case, these changes should make everyone happy. Either way, after all of the events in recent years, it’s comforting to see MLB take a proactive stance and ensure fans will be safe when attending games.

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Jeff Banister and Joe Maddon entered 2015 with completely different resumes. One was already considered arguably the best manager in baseball. The other, even the most diehard fans had to look up his name to see who he was.

By the end of the season, both men came away looking like the best managers in baseball.    

Banister walked away with the 2015 American League Manager of the Year award, while Maddon earned the NL honors in a MLB Network special that aired Tuesday. The Texas Rangers boss bested Houston Astros manager A.J. Hinch and Minnesota Twins skipper Paul Molitor for the win. Banister received 17 first-place votes compared to eight for Hinch and two for Molitor.

Here is how the AL voting played out:

Maddon, in his first season as Chicago Cubs manager, defeated Terry Collins of the New York Mets and Mike Matheny of the St. Louis Cardinals. He had 18 first-place votes against nine for Matheny and three for Collins.

Here is how the NL voting played out:

Based on their reputations, it would be hard for Banister and Maddon to be more different. Yet their player-first styles speak volumes for how to manage in the modern era. 

Relatively unheralded, Banister was the Pittsburgh Pirates’ bench coach from 2011-14 before taking over as Texas’ manager last winter. With the Rangers winners of an AL-worst 67 games in 2014, Banister led the team to a 21-game improvement on its way to winning the AL West. While Texas was ultimately eliminated lost to the Toronto Blue Jays in the division series, Banister’s effect on the clubhouse cannot go understated.

“I like pretty much everything about him,” third baseman Adrian Beltre said in October, per Jean-Jacques Taylor of ESPN.com. “In spring training, the attitude that he had made the players believe in him. He talked about leading us to the World Series then. It doesn’t take long to build trust with a manager. You can tell the way they go about their business and how honest they are when they talk to you.”

Banister is the third Rangers skipper to win the Manager of the Year award, joining Buck Showalter (2004) and Johnny Oates (1996, shared with Joe Torre). 

Tom Singer of MLB.com made an interesting point:

Taking over Chicago after establishing himself as the best manager in Tampa Bay Rays history, Maddon may have been the Cubs’ best acquisition in an offseason full of them.

Maddon led the Cubs to a 97-65 record, the third-best record in baseball (and their own division) and a defeat of the Pirates in the NL Wild Card Game. It was Chicago’s first playoff appearance since 2008, as Maddon added a calming presence to an organization that had been in disarray in the pre-Theo Epstein era.

“Just from the very first day of spring training, encouraging us to be ourselves and (telling us to) don’t change the way you play, and him just being a laid-back manager,” Cubs rookie Kris Bryant said, per Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune. “It’s easy to talk to him and just having a lot of young guys on the team, that just breeds success. He brought the best out of me, and a lot of our success was just having him lead the way and keeping us calm and confident, and at the same time, having a lot fun.”

Maddon is the sixth manager in MLB history to win the award at least three times. Bobby Cox and Tony La Russa are the only mangers with four trophies. Overall, Maddon is the fourth Cubs Manager of the Year, joining Jim Frey (1984), Don Zimmer (1989) and Lou Piniella (2008). Adam Jacobi took a bold but correct stance:

While it’s fair to say other managers had a right to the award—Hinch and Matheny would have been perfectly acceptable winners—it’s hard to quibble with how the respective votes went. Maddon arrived in Chicago with massive expectations and exceeded them from the moment he arrived. Banister made his way to Arlington almost anonymously, and now everyone in Texas knows his name.

They may have taken different paths, but both proved themselves more than deserving in 2015.

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Add Cincinnati Reds third baseman Todd Frazier to the ever-growing list of All-Stars reportedly available on this winter’s trade market.

Continue for updates.

Frazier Available for ‘Big Return’

Monday, Nov. 16

ESPN’s Jayson Stark spoke with an executive from another team who said Frazier is “legitimately out there” for a trade.

Frazier, 29, hit .255/.309/.498 with 35 home runs and 89 RBI last season, making his second consecutive All-Star Game. He also took home the 2015 Home Run Derby, which was held at Cincinnati’s Great American Ballpark.

To be clear, the Reds aren’t holding a firesale here. Stark reported the team is looking for “big-league ready young players” in any package it receives for Frazier or closer Aroldis Chapman. Both are at least tangentially on the trade market for long-term salary concerns.

Frazier can become a free agent after the 2017 season and Chapman after 2016. They will be looking for contracts that put them among the highest-paid players at their position—and in Chapman’s case, likely the highest-paid closer in baseball. Frazier ranked eighth among third baseman in FanGraphs’ wins above replacement formula and is fifth combining the last two campaigns.

“If they want to give themselves the best chance to win in the future, they probably should be looking to move Frazier this winter, because this is the best possible time to move him,” Buster Olney wrote at ESPN.com.

If the Reds don’t believe it’s in their budget to sign Frazier long-term—an understandable concern given they went 64-98 last season—then it would only make sense to explore his market.

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In the wake of major offseason moves, Atlanta star first baseman Freddie Freeman has been linked to an offeseason move.

Continue for updates.

Gonzalez Comments on Freeman Rumors

Tuesday, Nov. 17

Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said Freeman “absolutely” will be playing for the Braves on opening day in an interview with MLB Network Radio. 

“I talked to Coppolella,” Gonzalez said. “He said [Freeman] rumors are not true. We’ve never even entertained idea. People have called, he’s listened”

Conflicting Reports Surround Freeman’s Status on Trade Block

Monday, Nov. 16

Jonah Keri of ESPN, citing a source “close to the situation,” reported there is “nothing” to the rumors surrounding Freeman. Keri added the “Braves have had zero conversations about him.” 

On Sunday, Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports reported the Braves’ willingness to shop Freeman was “the talk of the (Arizona) Fall League.”

Freeman is Face of the Braves During Rebuild

Freeman, 26, hit .276/.370/.471 with 18 home runs and 66 RBI last season. He was limited to 118 games because of injuries, breaking a streak of four straight years with 147 games played. Still, when in the lineup, Freeman was one of a select few bright spots for an Atlanta team that dropped 95 games.

Those struggles look to be the first year of a multiyear rebuild. The Braves shipped 26-year-old Andrelton Simmons, perhaps MLB’s best defensive shortstop, to the Los Angeles Angels on Nov. 12 for a package that included Erick Aybar. Trading Freeman immediately after would send a disconcerting sign to fans who expected the young pair to be part of the team’s next run at contention.

Simmons is under contract through the 2020 season, while Freeman’s $135 million deal ends a year later. At the time, it looked like the Braves were signing Freeman and Simmons as proactive moves to keep their best young players in-house.       

As it stands, it appears those contracts are just being used to make their young players more attractive in potential trade packages.

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Later this month, Bryce Harper may win his first MVP award. For now, he’ll have to settle for his first Silver Slugger.

The Washington Nationals outfielder was among 18 players honored as the game’s best hitters Thursday night at the Silver Slugger announcement. Harper, 23, hit .330/.460/.649 with 42 home runs and 99 runs batted in, setting career highs across the board despite a disappointing season overall in Washington.   

Named the NL’s Most Outstanding Player by his peers at the Players Choice Awards, Harper said health was the biggest contributing factor in his 2015 success, per Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post:

I truly think it’s always been there. I just think I was healthy this year. I think that’s the main thing. I was able to stay on the field this year and not have those little nagging injuries of sliding into third base and getting my thumb or running into a wall in Dodger Stadium. Just trying to be as smart as I could out there and just play the game the right way. It just comes with the experience of knowing when to go hard, when not to go hard, and just being able to be smart about everything I do.

Harper is one of nine first-time winners on the list, joining Josh Donaldson, Nelson Cruz, J.D. Martinez, Xander Bogaerts, Brandon Crawford, Dee Gordon, Nolan Arenado and Kendrys Morales. Donaldson joins Lorenzo Cain and Mike Trout among the American League finalists for MVP.

Donaldson, 29, crushed 41 home runs and drove in 123 runs while posting a .297/.371/.568 slash line. He helped lead the Toronto Blue Jays to their first playoff berth since 1993 and belted three more home runs during their 11-game playoff stint.

Joining Trout in the AL outfield are Cruz and Martinez. Cruz hit 44 home runs and drove in 93 runs in his first season with the Seattle Mariners, giving him 40-plus homers in consecutive seasons. Martinez earned his first Silver Slugger with a .282/.344/.535 slash line with 38 homers and 102 runs batted in. 

The Angels’ struggles kept Trout a little in the shadows this year, but he had a better season in 2015 than his MVP 2014 campaign in nearly every category. He set a career high with 41 home runs, lowered his strikeout rate by nearly 3 percent and posted a best in isolated slugging (.290).

Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times noted Trout’s propensity for setting records:

While the NL MVP might as well already have Harper’s name etched, the Silver Slugger might have offered a preview of his runner-up. The Arizona Diamondbacks’ Paul Goldschmidt took home honors on the NL first baseman ballot, besting Joey Votto, the other NL MVP finalist. Goldschmidt had an advantage in batting average (.321 to .314), home runs (33 to 29) and runs batted in (110 to 80), so it’s not much of a surprise.

Andrew McCutchen matched Trout with his MLB-high fourth straight Silver Slugger. The Pittsburgh Pirates star hit .292/.401/.488 with 23 home runs and 96 RBI. Rounding out the outfield for the NL is Carlos Gonzalez, who returned to elite form after years of injury troubles. The Colorado Rockies star set a career high with 40 homers and had his first 90-RBI season since 2011.

Louisville Slugger congratulated Gonzalez:

In the infield, Gordon, Arenado, Crawford and San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey join Goldschmidt. Madison Bumgarner took home his second straight Silver Slugger at pitcher. The Giants led the way among all teams with three winners, a bit of a surprise given San Francisco ranked just 12th in runs scored. 

The American League infield is comprised of Detroit Tigers first baseman Miguel Cabrera, Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve, Donaldson and Bogaerts. Morales’ win at designated hitter capped things off. The Tigers were the only AL team with multiple winners. 

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