Grains of salt. So many grains of salt. But at this point in the free agent process, surely you already know that, right?
Here’s the latest on 26-year-old shortstop/third baseman/ball-punisher Manny Machado, who would be the most compelling free agent in many, many years if not for the other 26-year-old on the market, Bryce Harper. Per Jon Heyman, the reason we haven’t yet seen Machado sign, despite rumors that he would be signing quickly after the flip to the new year, is because he’s still seeking a truly monster contract:
Word is, Machado camp still seeking 300M plus. ChiSox, Phillies not believed to be close to that ask (though exact current offers aren’t known, and can change). Meanwhile, Yanks, believed to be preferred destination, have yet to make official offer. Still no word of mystery team.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) January 9, 2019
More specifically, Machado camp still believed seeking something “north of Stanton.” (325M plus). Great player, very young for a free agent (26) and doesn’t hurt to ask. Still, very hard to see him getting there (or even close) on non-deferred, true-value deal at this point.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) January 9, 2019
Although $300+ million seemed very possible for Machado at the outset of the offseason, the ever-tightening purse strings of many clubs left him with a small-ish market in the nine-figure range, and it just doesn’t feel like there’s going to be enough upward push from competitors to get him over $300 million.
In fact, one report suggests his market is already down to just two teams:
SOURCE: The race to sign Manny Machado is down to two teams – the #Phillies and the #WhiteSox.#ZDigital #ZDeportes @z101digital @ZDeportes
— Héctor Gómez (@hgomez27) January 9, 2019
It would be quite a shock, from a fit perspective, to see the Yankees out on Machado, who makes so freaking much sense for them and who reportedly really wants to be a Yankee. But there have been rumors that the Yankees are only lukewarm on Machado, and may not even top TWO hundred million in an offer. Serious smoke, perhaps. But Jon Heyman could see it being legit:
Can’t confirm Yankees are out (there’s no word they’ve been told this at least), but as said, they haven’t engaged in negotiations lately or made an official offer. They aren’t meeting the believed 325M-plus target, or even 300. Or even coming especially close. https://t.co/pTjdkPLjSP
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) January 9, 2019
For the Yankees to truly be out on Machado at this point, he’d have to have offers in hand from the White Sox and Phillies that he knows he would be comfortable accepting, and also he’d have to know that the Yankees definitely will not be approaching those offers. It does at least seem possible, even as the Yankees should have perverse amounts of money to spend, especially on a 26-year-old star like Machado who could fit with their club seamlessly for a decade.
Since the Yankees are not in on Bryce Harper (by all appearances, at least), Machado going elsewhere would probably slightly help a dark horse like the Cubs on Harper.
Speaking of Harper, it’s long been expected that he’d wait for Machado to sign so that he and Scott Boras could top Machado’s deal. It’s kinda Boras’s thing in these situations. But if Machado is holding out for well over $300 million, then (1) Harper might not be signing for a very long time yet, and (2) for all we know, Harper might be initially asking for something that starts with a four.