Latest MLB rumors on Imanaga, Hernandez, Snell, plus more free agent and trade updates – USA TODAY
We are less than three months away from the start of the 2024 MLB season. Yet, there are several names still available in free agency that could be franchise changers. Blake Snell, Cody Bellinger, Shota Imanaga, and Josh Hader are just a few of the players yet to find a home for 2024.
Even though those players and more are still up for the taking, the trade market has heated up. With former Cy Young winner Robbie Ray headed to the San Francisco Giants, we’ve seen other names pop up more consistently in trade talks as well. Perhaps this is a sign of big news to come. Perhaps the Hot Stove will start warming up as we approach ever closer to spring training. Perhaps as the Jan. 12 arbitration deadline knocks on the door, teams will start to pick up their spending.
Here are the latest rumors surrounding MLB’s top remaining free agents and potential trade targets.
HOT STOVE UPDATES:10 predictions for the rest of the 2024 MLB offseason
Only four teams are in the running for Shota Imanaga
A report from Bob Nightengale states that only four teams are in serious consideration for the Japanese starter Imanaga before the Jan. 12 deadline to sign him. Nightengale reveals that two of those four teams are the Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox. The Athletic’s Jim Bowden said on Jan. 5 that the Red Sox, Cubs, Angels, and Giants are the finalists for the left-hander.
HOT STOVE UPDATES: MLB free agency: Ranking and tracking the top players available.
The Giants are the only team of this bunch to have made a serious signing. The team not only traded for Robbie Ray a few days ago, but also signed Korean outfielder Jung Hoo Lee to a six-year, $113 million deal in December.
Red Sox are looking to sell so they can buy
Despite their reported interest in Imanaga, the Red Sox have also expressed interest in trading away either closer Kenley Jansen or outfielder/designated hitter Masataka Yoshida. Both players were signed by the Red Sox last offseason. This seems to be an anticipatory move by the Red Sox, who need to free up some cap space in order to sign free agent Teoscar Hernandez, who has been linked to Boston since the middle of December.
Jansen, 36, still has some value. He was an All-Star in 2023, and although his 3.63 ERA was his highest since 2019, he still provided a solid season outside of rough months in May and September. Yoshida, on the other hand, is still owed a lot of money, and is coming off a season where he posted just 1.4 rWAR. Yoshida could obviously improve, but he was a horrendous fielder and not nearly good enough with the bat (109 OPS+) to warrant other teams spending considerable prospect capital.
Dodgers are the favorites to land Teoscar Hernandez
After the worst season of his career in Seattle, Teoscar Hernandez’s market seems to be skyrocketing far more than any other free agent. The 2021 All-Star has a reputation of crushing left-handed pitching and could be a tremendous help to any team looking for a right-handed outfielder.
Jim Bowden reports that the Dodgers have made it known that they are interested in acquiring exactly that. MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand and Hector Gomez report separately that the Dodgers are among frontrunners to land the slugger. It’s no coincidence that the Dodgers became heavily invested in Hernandez after the Giants acquired left-handed starter Robbie Ray from the Seattle Mariners. Furthermore, with the Giants also interested in left-hander Shota Imanaga, it is in the Dodgers’ best interests to hedge their bets and secure someone who can dominate southpaws.
Giants are out on Blake Snell
After being heavily linked to the reigning NL Cy Young winner, the Giants appear to be out after acquiring Robbie Ray. Bob Nightengale reports that, barring a tremendous drop in Snell’s price tag, the Giants will focus their money elsewhere.
Nightengale also predicts that Snell could wait into spring training to sign. Despite posting a 1.20 ERA over his last 22 starts of 2023, teams are wary because of Snell’s inability to pitch deep into games and his lack of control. Snell pitched past six innings just three times in 2023 and has never pitched eight or more innings his entire career.
Despite winning the Cy Young last year, Snell also posted his worst strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.36) since 2017. He walked nearly 40 percent more batters per nine innings in 2023 than he did in 2022. He became the first pitcher since 1959 to win the Cy Young Award while leading MLB in walks. It’s easy to assume that Snell won’t be able to maintain such a low percentage of baserunners coming around to score.
Snell’s .256 BABIP in 2023 is another cause for concern. That’s a very difficult number to maintain. In fact, the last time Snell had a BABIP that low was 2018, when he won his first Cy Young. The following season, Snell recorded a .343 BABIP, and his ERA climbed from 1.89 to 4.29 the very next season.
Marcus Stroman is very interested in signing with the Yankees. The feeling isn’t mutual
Two-time All-Star Marcus Stroman has expressed interest in signing with the Yankees. The Yankees have not made an offer, according to Bob Nightengale.
Stroman’s pleas to play in pinstripes come a little over five years after Stroman was traded to the New York Mets. Stroman desperately wanted to play for the Yankees at the time, but after the Yankees failed to pay the price for him, GM Brian Cashman told reporters that he did not view Stroman as a “difference maker”.
Stroman did not take that quote well. In a series of now-deleted tweets, Stroman wrote that he expected that quote to age horribly. After some backlash, Stroman did not back down, writing “Besides [Gerrit] Cole, there’s no current Yankee pitcher who will be anywhere in my league over the next 5-7 years.” He continued, “Their pitching always folds in the end. That lineup and payroll should be winning World Series’ left and right…yet they’re in a drought. Lol.”
Now two years later, Stroman is still a solid pitcher, having posted sub-4 ERA’s in each of his two seasons with the Chicago Cubs. He may not be the top-of-the-line starter that he once was, but for a Yankees team looking to add starting pitching depth, Stroman could be a steal. They do not seem interested in Stroman though.
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